Card game variations on a gaming platform

ABSTRACT

A multi-opportunity, risk vs. reward, playfield-style gaming platform grants players the ability to evaluate gaming situations and decide whether to risk current assets for greater rewards throughout the course of a game. Players have multiple opportunities to make risk versus reward decisions that ultimately affect the financial outcome of game play. Positive impact squares, negative impact squares and indifferent impact squares are assigned to the game playfield though the software platform based upon manufacturer and casino specified odds for each “Coin-In” credit level and value of game play. A status and information area legend is updated through the software platform and reports important game play information to players, allowing them to make more informed decisions throughout the course of their gaming experience.

RELATED APPLICATION DATA

This application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Application60/842,636, filed Sep. 6, 2006.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates generally to electronic casino games ornetworked games and more specifically it relates to a multi-opportunity,risk vs. reward, playfield-style gaming platform for creating a newstyle of video-based casino game that delivers a more thrilling andentertaining gaming experience to players by granting them the abilityto evaluate their situation and decide whether to risk current assetsfor greater rewards throughout the course of the game, and as a resultof this new gaming concept, generate significantly greater returns tocasinos.

2. Background of the Art

Electronic casino games have been in use for years. Typically,electronic casino games are mechanical and/or video-based forms ofcasino gaming devices such as slot machines, video poker, and multi-linevideo slot machines employing a Random Number Generator (RNG) for thepurpose of determining random events that determine winning versuslosing outcomes.

A problem with conventional electronic casino games is thatknowledgeable players understand that the RNG will immediately determinethe outcome of the game, and that outcome is completely determined bythe processor executing the RNG algorithm. Although video poker allowsfor some variance in outcome since it is based on a “virtually shuffled”deck of 52 cards, there are a limited number of winning outcomes thatcan be attained after the first five cards have been electronically“dealt” to the player with only a maximum of five additional cards to beused as replacements. Another problem with conventional electroniccasino games is the majority of video-based casino gaming devices aremerely variations of two standard software gaming platforms—video pokerand multi-line video slots. While there are a large variety of styles ofeach gaming platform, the game play is always basically the same, andboth platforms have become stale over time, requiring game manufacturersto pay costly royalties to obtain licensed celebrity, movie and gameshow themes in order to maintain player interest.

Another problem with conventional electronic casino games is thatcurrent video-based casino gaming technology offers players very fewchoices and opportunities to influence and control the outcome of theirgame play, or even to give an appearance to actual player input.Mechanical and multi-line video slots typically only allow the player toselect the number of pay lines and credits per line to bet. After theseselections are made, the player has either won or lost. Video pokertypically offers the player only a single opportunity to influence gameoutcome by discarding up to five cards from their hand.

While these devices may be suitable for the particular play events, theyare not as suitable for creating a new style of video-based casino gamethat delivers a more thrilling and entertaining gaming experience toplayers by granting them the ability to evaluate their situation anddecide whether to risk current assets for greater rewards throughout thecourse of the game, and as a result of this new gaming concept, generatesignificantly greater returns to casinos. Mechanical and multi-linevideo slots typically only allow the player to select the number of paylines and credits per line to bet. After these selections are made, theplayer has either won or lost. Video poker typically offers the playeronly a single opportunity to influence game outcome by discarding up tofive cards from their hand.

Certain games, especially in bonus rounds, have provided what arereferred to in the art as “pick-and-reveal” games in which a limitednumber (X) of hidden symbols are provided and a number of selections orpicks (fewer than X) are provided. The player exhausts the fewer than Xpicks to reveal some, but not all, hidden symbols.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,102,798 and 6,572,471 (Bennett) describes a slotmachine including a prize display, a coin entry slot, a payout tray andinternally mounted game control processor circuits. The game displaymeans comprises a video display screen controlled to display a gameimage divided into a matrix of elements or player selectable zones. Thevideo screen is preferably of the touch sensitive variety, having anarray of touch sensitive areas located on its display surface with onesuch area associated with each matrix element. The player may select oneof the matrix elements by touching the screen within the area of therespective element to be selected, thereby causing the image in theelement to change to reveal whether or not a prize value is associatedwith that zone.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,261,177 (Bennett) describes a slot machine that includesa prize display, a coin entry slot, and payout tray and internallymounted game control processor circuits. The game display meanscomprises a video display screen controlled to display a game imagedivided into a matrix of elements or player selectable zones. The videoscreen has an array of touch sensitive areas located on its displaysurface with one such area associated with each matrix element. Thecontrol processor causes an image to be displayed on the display means,such as a sportsman playing his sport and randomly selects one or moreof the matrix elements to have a prize associated with it. The playerselects one of the matrix elements to have a prize by touching thescreen within the area of the respective element to be selected, therebycausing the image in the element to change to reveal the associatedprize value. Additional player controls are implemented by displayingimages corresponding to controls on the screen such that when thecontrol images are touched, the associated function is caused to beperformed. In the event that the player wins the game, by selecting azone having associated prize value, the machine will pay him a prizeequivalent to the prize value in the zone selected by the playermultiplied by the number of units bet.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,160,188; 6,602,137; and 6,899,620 (Kaminkow et al.)describes a gaming device having a multiple selection and awarddistribution bonus scheme. A selection is chosen from a group ofselections. The game determines awards for distribution to theselection. Once determined, the awards are distributed to the selectionand a player is provided with the awards. The game preferably utilizes anumber of award pools in order to determine the award distribution. Thisaward pool determination is based on, for example, a number ofprobability tables associated with the award pools.

U.S. Pat. No. 7,004,834 (Walker et al.) describes systems and methodsfacilitating play of a game with user-selected elements. According toone or more embodiments of the present invention, a set of all possibleelements of a game is determined. Each of the elements of the set isassociated with at least one of a plurality of locations. Arepresentation of the plurality of locations is displayed to a player,defining a set of selectable locations. At least one selection signal isreceived, with each selection signal indicating a selectable locationfrom the set of selectable locations, indicating at least one selectedelement. An outcome is determined based on at least one selectedelement.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,958,013 (Mireau et al.) describes a gaming device andmethod which includes a plurality of reels having multiple symbols onthe reels. The symbols include at least one activator symbol. In oneembodiment, if the player obtains an activator symbol on the reels, theactivator symbol activates the symbols that are adjacent to theactivator symbol. Activating the adjacent symbols reveals the awardsassociated with the adjacent symbols. The player receives an award thatequals the activator symbol award plus the awards associated with eachsymbol that is adjacent to the activator symbol.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,780,107 (Baerlocher et al.) describes a gaming deviceand method having a pick reduction game. Initially, a plurality of firstselections is displayed to the player. Also, a number of picks isdisplayed to the player where the number of picks is greater than thenumber of first selections. The player uses the number of picks to pickfirst selections until the player picks a trigger selection. The numberof picks is reduced after each pick by the player. When the player picksthe trigger selection, the gaming device displays a plurality of secondselections to the player. Each of the second selections is associatedwith an award. The player picks second selections and receives awardsfor each picked second selection until there are no picks remaining.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,632,140 describes a system and method for facilitatingparticipation by a player in a bonus event of a slot machine. A displaygrid associated with the slot machine is presented, where the displaygrid includes a plurality of active display segments. Symbols arepresented in each of the active display segments, such as by randomlyselecting symbols and displaying a randomly selected symbol in each ofthe active display segments. At least some of the symbols arediscontinue symbols which, if presented in a display segment, causesthat display segment to be deactivated, thereby eliminating that displaysegment from the bonus event. The presentation of symbols and subsequentdeactivation of symbols associated with discontinue symbols continuesuntil all of the active display segments have been deactivated.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,722,982 (Kaminkow et al.) describes a gaming device thatprovides a player with an opportunity to maximize a gaming device award.The gaming device presents the player with a display having a pluralityof symbols and enables the player to choose one or more of the symbols.The game reveals the award(s) associated with the selected symbols butdoes not reveal which awards are associated with which symbols. The gamethen provides the player with one or more opportunities to upgrade thetotal award by deselecting one or more of the selected symbols andre-selecting another symbol for each deselected symbol.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A symbol display, pick and select wagering game provides a field ofselectable areas, zones, symbols, frames or positions to a player(collectively referred to as frames). Hidden symbols are revealed uponplayer selection of frames, the hidden symbols having the possibility ofpositive credit effects, potential positive credit impact, negativecredit impact, partial negative credit impact and/or neutral creditimpact. The player is awarded different categories of selection choicesthat have different effects upon the impact of symbols revealed. Apreferred potential of different impacts would be a SAFE selection,which would neutralize, moderate or reduce any negative or potentialnegative symbol selected, and a RISK selection that would not alter theimpact of any symbol selected.

Upon placing a wager at risk, the system will provide the player with anumber of selections to exercise on the available frames to exposesymbols. The selections are provided with a combination of selectionshaving at least two different properties, such as the SAFE selection andthe RISK selection. The player then exercises the selections in acontrolled manner, with the player being allowed to decline use ofremaining selections (intuitively only declining use of RISK selections)so that any accumulated awards are retained without placing those awardsor wagered value at risk in further selections.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention provides a new multi-opportunity, risk vs. reward,playfield-style gaming platform construction wherein the same can beutilized for creating a new style of video-based casino game thatdelivers a more thrilling and entertaining gaming experience to playersby granting them the ability to evaluate their situation and decidewhether to risk current assets for greater rewards throughout the courseof the game, and as a result of this new gaming concept, generatesignificantly greater returns to casinos.

Various other objects, features and attendant advantages of the presentinvention will become fully appreciated as the same becomes betterunderstood when considered in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings, in which like reference characters designate the same orsimilar parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front view sample screen of the gaming platform employingthe “Liquid Gold” theme.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart for play of one embodiment of the presenttechnology.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

There are numerous aspects of the disclosed technology that constituteinventions that are novel, unobvious and establish inventive steps overprior art. Among the types of inventions described herein are gamingapparatus, game rules, betting procedures, game attributes, methods ofplaying games, and the like. The following description provides enablingdisclosure of the various technologies supporting the inventionsdescribed herein.

A symbol display, pick and select wagering game provides a field ofselectable areas, zones, symbols, frames or positions to a player(collectively referred to as frames). In a pick-and-reveal wageringgame, events are usually played by providing a field of selectablelocations, the player selects a limited or defined number of individualselectable locations until an event ending triggering selection occurs,and any accumulated awards are paid to the player. The selectablelocations may be provided in any convenient manner and in any themedmanner desired by a designer. For example, columns and rows of squaresmay be provided, a honeycomb array of spaces, sections of a puzzle,randomly distributed spaces or objects, letters in a phrase or story,masking symbols, or any other manner of identifying a selectablelocation under which a symbol is hidden. Hidden symbols (symbols whichare virtually positioned under selectable areas) are revealed uponplayer selection of frame locations, the hidden symbols having thepossibility of positive credit effects, potential positive creditimpact, negative credit impact, partial negative credit impact and/orneutral credit impact. The player is awarded at least two differentcategories of selection choices that have different effects upon theimpact of symbols revealed. A preferred potential of different impactswould be a SAFE selection, which would neutralize, reduce, or moderateany negative or potential negative symbol selected, and a RISK selectionthat would not alter the impact of any symbol selected.

The effect of the different formats of selections can vary and need notbe limited to two properties only. For example, the SAFE selection maynullify an entire adverse effect of a selection (e.g., a loss of allwagers) or may merely reduce the impact of an adverse selection (e.g., asymbol indicating a loss of all wagers would be reduced to only a lossof or reduction of a portion of the wagers, such as a loss of 1× wageredunit, or a loss of a specific percentage or proportion of an initialwager or the winnings accumulated at the time of selecting a negativeevent with a SAFE wager with the other units remaining in play).Alternatively, if a selection made under a SAFE selection wouldordinarily end the game (with or without attendant loss of all or aportion of initial wagers or accumulated winnings), selection under aSAFE choice could result in only a loss of a RISK selection or a SAFEselection, still allowing some possibility of a winning event to occur.These are some of the ways in which house hold percentages can be variedas well as varying formats of game play.

A non-limiting list of negative effects and possible impacts with SAFEselections might be described in accordance with the following table.The RISK selections would have no impact on the negative effects, sothey are not listed in the table.

NEGATIVE IMPACT OF SYMBOL POSSIBLE EFFECTS OF SAFE SELECTION Loss ofall 1. No loss of winnings. accumulated winnings 2. Reduction of loss toa specific portion 3. Reduction of loss to absolute amount 4. Reductionof loss to initial wager 5. Loss of winnings but with an additional SAFE   selection(s) added 6. Player option among moderating effects Loss ofselection(s) 1. No loss of a selection(s) 2. Loss of fewer selection(s)3. Conversion of SAFE selection(s) to RISK    selection(s) 4. Loss of aportion of initial wager and/or    accumulated winnings 5. Player optionamong moderating effects End of Game 1. No immediate end of game 2. Lossof selection(s) 3. Loss of a portion of initial wager and/or   accumulated winnings 4. Player option among moderating effects Loss ofAbsolute 1. No loss of amount Amount 2. Reduction of loss to a specificportion 3. Reduction of loss to smaller absolute amount 4. Reduction ofloss to initial wager or portion    thereof 5. Loss of amount but withan additional SAFE    selection(s) added 6. Player option amongmoderating    effects Any Other Negative 1. No negative effect Effect 2.Reduced negative effect

The award of the various types of selections may be performed accordingto various game play rules. For example, the number of selections andthe distributions among the types of selections may be wager dependentor fixed according to game rules. An example of fixed provision ofselections would be that in every initial game to be played, uponplacing an initial wager amount (X) at risk, the player will be given afixed number of selections, such as five (5) selections, two of whichare SAFE selections and three of which are RISK selections. The amountof any final award to the player will be the result of symbols revealedmultiplied by the wager amount (usually as a multiple of minimum wagersallowed). For example, if during play of a selection game, the playersuccessfully picks an award totaling three (3), the win would be 3×,three times the amount wagered. If the player makes a wager of 1, 2, 3,4 or 5 times the minimum allowed wager, the selections would still betwo SAFE selections and three RISK selections in a fixed format.

In a wager-based provision format of selections, the number and type ofselections may depend upon the size or frequency of wagers. For example,five selections may be offered for 1×, 2×, 3×, 4× and 5× wagers, butthere could be no SAFE selections (or 1 SAFE selection) for 1×, only 1×SAFE selection for 1× and 2× wagers, exactly two SAFE selections for 3×and 4× wagers, and three SAFE selections for a 5× wager. Alternatively,five selections may be offered for 1×, 2×, 3×, and 4× wagers, but therecould be no SAFE selections (or 1 SAFE selection) for 1×, only 1× SAFEselection for 1× and 2× wagers, exactly two SAFE selections for 3×, 4×and 5× wagers, and there would be a total of six selections providedwith a 5× wager. There might alternatively be three SAFE selections andsix selections total available with a 5× wager.

There may be a number of different formats for exercising the selectionsby the player. A fast method of exercise would be for the player beingrequired to select or the processor automatically selecting all SAFEwagers as a first step in the selection process. This would assure thata first selection (if any SAFE selections are available) could not be alosing selection or game ending selection. After all SAFE selectionshave been made, the player can look at the preliminary results anddetermine if existing amounts of value shall be placed at risk or ifadditional amounts shall be placed at risk. For example, if with a wagerof 5× the first two SAFE exposures produce a result of plus-two (+2) asan award or as a return of the 5× and an add-on of +2, the player mayelect to keep the 7× result and not place that win event at furtherrisk. If the first two disclosed symbols are two parts of a jackpotevent, with no winnings achieved at that point (e.g., the letters B andO are exposed and the jackpot is awarded for exposure of B-O-N-U-S), theplayer would likely continue with the game, as withdrawing (notexercising the additional available selections) would cause no more harm(the loss of the 5× wager) than continuing with the play of the game.

The amount and distribution of selections may also be a carryover awardfrom a previous game. For example, in an earlier game an award or apartial award may be an indication to the player that in the next gameplayed, the player will receive three SAFE picks and three RISK pickswith any wager. This would encourage maximum wagers on those occasions.The game rules may provide that such bonus or award selection picks canonly be won with maximum wagers or can be played with only maximumwagers. The award could also be in the form that with the next gameplayed, the distribution of selections will shift to one more SAFEselection than is typically provided in a game. For example, if 1×receives no SAFE selections during normal play, the next play willprovide for one SAFE selection with a 1× wager. Similarly, if a 2× and3× wager receives only a single SAFE wager, the next play after thebonus award would provide the player with two SAFE selections, etc.

The exercise of the selections and the order of exercise of theselections may be more specifically controlled by the player. Forexample, it was described above that the SAFE selections could beexercised first by the processor or the player. Instead, the player mayselect whether the SAFE selection(s) will be exercised in any step ofthe game or if the RISK selections will be exercised at any step in theselection steps of the game. For example, if the player wagers 5× as theinitial wager and receives 2 SAFE selections and 3 RISK selections, theplayer may choose which type of selection will be exercised in the nextstep, exercise that specific selection type, and then select what typeof selection format will be used in the next selection step. The playermay elect to stop exercising selections at any time, but the player iscommitted to placing the original wager amount at risk and can collectonly accumulated awards at that stage of the game. For example, if theplayer has been initially given 2 SAFE selections and 3 RISK selections,the existing status of awards might well determine how the player willproceed. If the player has neither won nor lost any value after usingtwo SAFE selections and two RISK, the player would elect to proceed asthe original wager would be lost with a withdrawal (failure to exercisethe remaining RISK selection) and there may be no opportunity for theplayer to lose any more than the original wager with any further play ofthe game. If the player has accumulated an award at that stage, theplayer would consider the risk versus potential value of going forwardwith the next selection. For example, if the player has already wontwice the initial wager, and additional selections are unlikely tofurther improve the winnings, but there are negative impact symbolsavailable that could cause a loss of the winnings at that point, theplayer might elect to withdraw and take the winnings. There might be anincentive or disincentive in the game rules against not exercisingavailable selections. For example, if a player has a winning amount dueafter four selections (with one RISK selection remaining), and theinitial wager was 5×, failure to exercise the remaining selection mayincur a penalty of 1× or provide an award of 1×.

In events or rounds of play where a last remaining selection(s) is aSAFE selection, there would never be any reason for the player failingto exercise the SAFE selection as a worst case scenario would be aneutral result. As indicated earlier, the player may choose the order ofexercise of the selections. The player may choose to use RISK selectionsfirst, assuming that there are a higher number of favorable symbols andneutral symbols available during a first pick and then exercise the SAFEselections later. In game play where only SAFE selections remain and theexposed symbols are not likely to provide a winning result, the playermay be offered an incentive to turn-in and not exercise the SAFEselections, such as returning 1× out of the 5× wager for each SAFE wagerthat is not used. This minimizes losses for the player and assures a winfor the casino. This type of play might be used where the first threeselections produce neutral results and the likelihood of a positiveresult (seldom awarded for a single exposed symbol) are slight.

The distribution of the symbols in the selectable frames or positionsmay be handled in a number of different formats. The spacing may be invarious geometric distributions, hypergeometric distributions, shapes,patterns and the like. One format is to have the processor distributethe positive, negative and neutral symbols randomly on the array inadvance of the player making any actual selections. The distributionwould be random and the player would not have any indication of thelocation of individual symbols, so the game play would be random, but ifinformed of the predetermined location of symbols, the player might beinclined to feel that some exercise of logic on the selection would be aresult of expertise or luck in which the player's action have someeffect rather than the processor completely determining events, even ifthat processor determination is random as required by law.

Alternatively, the processor randomly can determine in which ordersymbols will be selected, without regard to which frames are selectedand in what order. In the circumstance where the player may exercisejudgment in the choice of which type of selection (SAFE or RISK) is tobe used in each turn, the player might still believe that player actionsare affecting results.

A gaming apparatus useful in the practice of the various technologiesand constituting an aspect of these inventions comprises a processor,player input controls, a video display and game control software inwhich the video display provides selectable areas, player input controlsallow selection of individual selectable areas by the player and theprocessor providing the player with a limited number of selections, andwithin selectable areas are hidden symbols that provide at least somepositive outcome effects when selected or negative outcome effects whenselected, wherein the processor provides at least two classes ofselections that have different effects on selection of a single class ofnegative outcome effects.

The electronic gaming machine suitable for use with an embodiment of thepresent invention may include a display and a number of input buttons,or touch screen functions to enable the player to initiate actions ormake responses as required during the game. In a game where the playeris playing against the house, the player's hand is displayed face up onthe screen as it is dealt and the house hand is shown face down on thescreen. Touch “buttons” can be provided on the screen in addition to orinstead of the physical buttons. In a further non-limitingconfiguration, one or more of the players can be located in separatelocations, and the player terminals or hand-held devices or playerscreens in rooms can be connected to the controller via communicationlinks (e.g., hardwired or wireless). Standard protocols, software,hardware and processor languages may be used in these communicationlinks, without any known limitation. There are hundreds of availablecomputer languages that may be used, among the more common being Ada;Algol; APL; awk; Basic; C; C++; Cobol; Delphi; Eiffel; Euphoria; Flash;Forth; Fortran; HTML; Icon; Java; Javascript; Lisp; Logo; Mathematica;MatLab; Miranda; Modula-2; Oberon; Pascal; Perl; PL/I; Prolog; Python;Rexx; SAS; Scheme; sed; Simula; Smalltalk; Snobol; SQL; Visual Basic;Visual C++; and XML.

Any commercial processor may be used either as a single processor,serial or parallel set of processors in the system. Examples ofcommercial processors include, but are not limited to Merced™, Pentium™,Pentium II™, Pentium III™, Pentium 4™, Pentium D™, Pentium M™,Centrino™, Core 2™ Duo, Core 2™ Quad, Dual Core™, Extreme Edition™,Itanium™, VIIV™, Xeon™, Celeron™, Pentium Pro™, Efficeon™, Athlon, AMD,Sempron™, Turion™ 64, Opteron™, X2 Dual-Core, Quad-Core, Multi-Core, andthe like.

Display screens may include but are not limited to: segment displayscreens, analog display screens, digital display screens, CRTs, LEDscreens, Plasma screens, liquid crystal diode screens, and the like.

It is also a possible format of play within the generic concepts of thepresent technology that when a player has exhausted all selections, theplayer may elect to pay an additional non-wager amount to continue withone or more additional selections. For example, if a player has madefive selections without a game terminating event occurring (e.g., acatastrophic loss of all wager and awards event) and has a potential fora large win (e.g., having selected B-O-N-U), the system would allow theplayer to purchase additional selections (either RISK selections orcombinations of RISK and SAFE selections). The quantity of selectionsthat may be further purchased may be limited and the type of selectionsthat may be purchased may be limited. For example, with an initial wagerof 5×, the player may be able to purchase two (2) more selections for anadditional 5×, and those selections may be limited to two RISKselections or a RISK selection and a SAFE selection with the order ofuse of the additional selections being fixed or optional at the choiceof the player. That is, if a SAFE and RISK selection are purchased, theRISK selection may be required to be used first, the SAFE selection maybe required to be used first, or the player may choose which is to beused first.

Upon placing a wager at risk, the system will provide the player with anumber of selections to exercise on the available frames to exposesymbols. The selections are provided with a combination of selectionshaving at least two different properties, such as the SAFE selection andthe RISK selection. The player then exercises the selections in acontrolled manner, with the player being allowed to decline use ofremaining selections (intuitively only declining use of RISK selections)so that any accumulated awards are retained without placing those awardsor wagered value at risk in further selections.

The present invention provides a multi-opportunity, risk vs. reward,playfield-style gaming platform on a communal, networked or standalonevideo-based casino gaming software platform that incorporates a uniqueplayfield-style design offering players multiple opportunities to makerisk versus reward decisions that ultimately affect the outcome of gameplay. The game is referred to as “risk-versus-reward” because the playermay have attained a level of award at some stage of play, and in seekingto attain a larger award, places existing winnings at risk in makingfurther selection. The platform can be customized with various gamingthemes and casino specified odds, payout ranges, and prizes. Thesoftware platform controls all functions of the game including theplayer interface, which allows the player to interact with the game, thegaming engine, which controls how the game plays out based upon playerinput, and the management interface, which allows the game manufacturerand casinos to customize various parameters of the game, employ securityand game tracking measures, and access various reporting features. Theplayer interface (e.g., touch screen function, button function, mousefunction, joy-stick function, keyboard function, monitor, wirelesscommunication device such as a PDA or mobile phone and the like), gamingengine (processor, game controller, rules sets, Random Number Generator,image files and the like), and management interface (I/O interface,database, security interface, credit management, comp management, andthe like) are not necessarily individual components, but rather may befunctions of the software platform as a whole on one or more processors.Since player and management interfaces are relatively standardizedthroughout the video-based casino gaming industry, the software platformcomponent description will concentrate on the unique, game play specificfunctions of the gaming engine. Positive impact squares are assigned tothe game playfield through the software platform based upon manufacturerand casino specified odds for each “Coin-In” credit level and value ofgame play. Negative impact squares are assigned to the game playfieldthrough the software platform based upon manufacturer and casinospecified odds for each “Coin-In” credit level and value of game play.Indifferent squares are assigned to the game playfield through thesoftware platform based upon manufacturer and casino specified odds foreach “Coin-In” credit level and value of game play. The status andinformation area (which may for example include any or all of at leastcredit status, game status, selection status, jackpot status,probability status on specific potential game outcomes, HELP functionsand the like) legend is updated through the software platform andreports important game play information to players, thereby allowingthem to make more informed decisions throughout the course of theirgaming experience. Game themes may comprise graphics, sound effects,animations, multi-media presentations and physical displays which may beapplied to the software platform and areas surrounding the game toattract players, maintain their interest, and provide a unique,fun-filled gaming experience.

The present technology may include a method of providing a wagering gameon a video wagering system comprising a player placing value at risk inexchange for a first number of player usable selections. The selectionscomprise at least two categories of selections: A first category ofselection having a first effect upon at least some selection results anda second category of selection having a second effect upon at least someselection results. The player exercises at least some but less than allselections of frames to reveal at least one symbol for each selectionmade. The symbols are able to provide a player with potentially positiveaward results, positive award results, potential negative results,negative results or neutral results; wherein at least the first effectof the first category of selection can at least reduce a negative effector potential negative effect by at least some degree.

A potentially positive award result is a symbol that may be combinedwith other symbols to provide a specific award or value. A positiveaward result is an symbol that provides an immediate value to theplayer. A potential negative result is a symbol that may be combinedwith other symbols to provide a specific award loss or value reduction.A negative result is a symbol that immediately causes a loss of aspecific amount, a specific value or an end to the game. A neutralresult is a result that does not have an immediate or potential effecton value or awards, such as a blank frame.

The method may be practiced wherein a selection of a negative effect ismade and the first effect nullifies the negative effect completely. Themethod may be practiced wherein a selection of a negative effect is madeand the first effect reduces the negative effect by a fixed degree. Themethod may be practiced wherein after making at least one selection, theplayer may forfeit at least one additional wager. The method may bepracticed wherein all first category of selections must be used beforeany of the second category of selections are exercised. The method maybe practiced wherein the player may elect which category of selection touse on each selection. The method may be practiced wherein at any timeduring play, if a player has accumulated an award amount, the player mayforfeit any remaining second category selections and retain all awardamounts accumulated at that time. The method may be practiced whereinthe second category of selections has no impact on any effects ofselections. The method may be practiced wherein the player is given anumber of selections fewer than a total number of frames from whichselections may be made. The method may be practiced wherein there are atleast five or at least ten frames from which selections may be made. Themethod may be practiced wherein there are at least 25 frames and theplayer receives at least two, three, four or five selections and atleast one selection is a first category of selection and at least oneselection is a second category selection. The method may be practicedwherein there are at least 10, 25, 50 and no more than 150, 250 or 1,000frames which may be selected by a player.

It is to be understood that the invention is not limited in itsapplication to the details of construction and to the arrangements ofthe components set forth in the following description or illustrated inthe drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of beingpracticed and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understoodthat the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purposeof the description and should not be regarded as limiting.

The present invention grants players the ability to evaluate theirsituation and decide whether to risk current assets for greater rewardsthroughout the course of the game, and as a result of this new gamingconcept, generate significantly greater returns to casinos.

Another method of game play is to provide a wagering game on a videowagering system comprising: a player placing value at risk in exchangefor a first number of player usable selections; the selectionscomprising two categories of selections, a first category of selectionhaving a first effect upon at least some selection results and a secondcategory of selection having a second effect upon at least someselection results; the player exercising at least some but less than allplayer usable selections of frames to reveal at least one symbol foreach selection made, symbols being able to provide a player withpotentially positive award results, positive award results, potentialnegative results, negative results or neutral results; at least thefirst effect of the first category of selection can at least reduce anegative effect or potential negative effect by at least some degree;wherein the player makes an election to forfeit at least one playerusable selection after having exercised at least some of the playerusable selections, whether or not an award has been accumulated.

Still another method of providing a wagering game on a video wageringsystem comprises: a player placing value at risk in exchange for a firstnumber of player usable selections; the selections comprising twocategories of selections, a first category of selection having a firsteffect upon at least some selection results and a second category ofselection having a second effect upon at least some selection results;the player exercising at least some but less than all selections offrames to reveal at least one symbol for each selection made, symbolsbeing able to provide a player with potentially positive award results,positive award results, potential negative results, negative results orneutral results; wherein at least the first effect of the first categoryof selection can at least reduce a negative effect or potential negativeeffect by at least some degree; and after exercise of some player usableselections but before termination of the game, a player may makeadditional wagers to be provided with additional player usableselections, wherein at least some of the player usable selections are asecond category of selection that does not at least reduce a negativeeffect or potential negative effect by at least some degree.

Still yet another method of providing a wagering game on a videowagering system comprises: a player placing value at risk in exchangefor a first number of player usable selections; the selectionscomprising two categories of selections, a first category of selectionhaving a first effect upon at least some selection results and a secondcategory of selection having a second effect upon at least someselection results; the player exercising at least some but less than allselections of frames to reveal at least one symbol for each selectionmade, symbols being able to provide a player with potentially positiveaward results, positive award results, potential negative results,negative results or neutral results; at least some symbols being imagesof playing cards; wherein at least the first effect of the firstcategory of selection can at least reduce a negative effect or potentialnegative effect by at least some degree. The selection of a negativeeffect may be made and the first effect allows replacement of a selectedsymbol after the symbol is revealed to the player. The selection of anegative effect may be made and the first effect may allow replacementof a selected symbol after the symbol is revealed to the player, butwith an alteration in awards provided by a pay table for ranked pokerhands. That is, even though the player has exercised a SAFE selectionand replaces a disclosed symbol using that SAFE selection, there is areduction in potential award amounts for given poker hands because ofthe additional benefits provided to the player. For example, if a paytable without replacement of cards has first awards, a pay table withreplacement of cards may have some or all payments for higher rankedhands adjusted because of the more favorable player possibilities forranked hands, as shown below.

HAND RANK NO REPLACEMENTS ONE REPLACEEMENT Royal Flush 1000 × Ante   750× Ante  Straight Flush 500 × Ante  400 × Ante  Four-of-a-Kind 150 ×Ante  100 × Ante  Full House 40 × Ante  25 × Ante  Flush 7 × Ante 5 ×Ante Straight 5 × Ante 4 × Ante Three-of-a-Kind 3 × Ante 2 × Ante TwoPair 2 × Ante 2 × Ante Jacks or Better 1 × Ante 1 × Ante

The multi-opportunity, risk vs. reward, playfield-style gaming platformmay reveal the entire game playfield at the end of game play, therebyallowing players to know the exact location of every positive andnegative impact square. Even though this revelation has no impact onfuture distributions, the display is of interest to players who are moreinclined to believe that past events influence future probabilities,even though that is not the actuality of the performance of a processor.

This invention may be embodied in the form illustrated in theaccompanying drawings, attention being called to the fact, however, thatthe drawings are illustrative only, and that changes may be made in thespecific construction illustrated.

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 generally illustrates a displayscreen on a gaming device 10 of one embodiment of the present invention,which is preferably a slot machine having the controls, displays andfeatures of a conventional slot machine (which includes within the artany electronic or electromechanical gaming device such as video screens,mixed reels and video screens), such as credit control, credit input,player controls, processor, random number generation, game control,display screen, and optionally external communication capability such asto a central computer, communal screen, wireless player access and thelike. Gaming device 10 is constructed so that a player can operategaming device 10 while standing or sitting. However, it should beappreciated that gaming device 10 can be constructed as a pub-styletable-top game (not shown) that a player can operate preferably whilesitting or be part of a multiplayer platform or bank of gamingapparatus. Gaming device 10 can also be implemented as a program codestored in a detachable cartridge for operating a hand-held video gamedevice or be provided as an internet service or game. Also, gamingdevice 10 can be implemented as a program code stored on a disk or othermemory device which a player can use in a desktop or laptop personalcomputer or other computerized platform. Gaming device 10 canincorporate any game such as slot, poker, poker variants, blackjack,baccarat, pick-and-reveal symbol displays or keno. The symbols used onand in gaming device 10 may be in mechanical, electrical or video formor combinations of these.

As illustrated in FIG. 1, gaming device 10 includes a coin slot 12 andbill acceptor 14 where the player inserts money, coins or tokens. Theplayer can place coins in the coin slot 12 or paper money in the billacceptor 14. Other devices could be used for accepting payment such asreaders or validators for credit cards or debit cards or theincreasingly common ticket-in-ticket-out technology. When a playerinserts money in gaming device 10, a number of credits corresponding tothe amount deposited is shown in a credit display 16. The presentinvention preferably employs or uses credits, however, the presentinvention is not limited to the use of inserted credits and contemplatesemploying other units of value such as money or access to a playeraccount in a central storage for player credit. For purposes ofdescribing and claiming this invention, the term “credit” includes anyunit of value such as a gaming device credit or actual money.

After depositing the appropriate amount of money or establishing creditto risk for a game, a player can begin the game by pulling arm 18 or bypushing play button 20, touching a touch screen wager function or byautomated entry at time intervals or upon placing a maximum number ofcredits at risk for a game. Play button 20 can be any play activatorused by the player which starts any game or sequence of events in thegaming device.

Referring to FIG. 1, gaming device 10 also includes a bet display 22 anda bet one button 24. The player places a bet by pushing the bet onebutton 24. The player can increase the bet by one credit each time theplayer pushes the bet one button 24. When the player pushes the bet onebutton 24 or after the bet button has been pressed and the actual gameplay begins, the number of credits shown in the credit display 16decreases by one or the number of credits entered in the wager, as bydepressing the single bet button multiple times or by depressing amaximum bet button, and the number of credits shown in the bet display22 increases by one or the wagered amount.

Gaming device 10 also has a video display 28 which contains a pluralityof frames 30, preferably at least four by six or three by five columnsand rows (or any other number combinations, such as 10×12, 12×12, 12×30and the like) in video form to display the masking symbols and then theplayer selects individual ones of the displayed masking symbols in theframes. Each frame 30 displays at least one symbols such as bells,hearts, martinis, fruits, cactuses, numbers, cigars, letters, bars,poker cards, letters, words or other images, which preferably correspondto a theme associated with the gaming device 10. If the collection offrames displayed are provided by reels or frames 30 preferably are invideo form, the gaming device 10 preferably displays the video reels 30in the display device. Furthermore, gaming device 10 preferably mayinclude speakers 34 for making sounds or playing music.

A player may “cash out” and thereby receive a number of coinscorresponding to the number of remaining credits by pushing a cash outbutton 26. When the player “cashes out,” the player receives the coinsin a coin payout tray 36. The gaming device 10 may employ other payoutmechanisms such as credit slips redeemable by a cashier orelectronically recordable cards that keep track of the player's credits.

With respect to electronics, the controller of gaming device 10preferably includes the electronic configuration that may generally havea processor; a memory device for storing program code or other data; adisplay device (i.e., a liquid crystal display, CRT, flat screen, plasmascreen, light-emitting diode, or any other image display); a pluralityof speakers; and at least one input device. The processor is preferablya microprocessor or microcontroller-based platform that is capable ofdisplaying images, symbols and other indicia such as images of people,characters, places, things and faces of cards. The memory device caninclude random access memory (RAM) for storing event data or other datagenerated or used during a particular game. The memory device can alsoinclude read only memory (ROM) for storing program code, which controlsthe gaming device 10 so that it plays a particular game in accordancewith applicable game rules and pay tables.

The player preferably uses input devices, such as an arm, play button,the bet one button and the cash out button to input signals into gamingdevice 10. A touch screen and an associated touch screen controller arepreferably used in conjunction with a display device described in detailbelow. Touch screen and touch screen controller are connected to a videocontroller and processor. A player can make decisions and input signalsinto the gaming device 10 by touching the touch screen at theappropriate places. The processor can be connected to coin slot or billacceptor or any other credit device. The processor can be programmed torequire a player to deposit a certain amount of money in order to startthe game.

It should be appreciated that although a processor and memory device arepreferable implementations of the present invention, the presentinvention can also be implemented using one or more application-specificintegrated circuits (ASIC's), FPGAs (Field Programmable Gated Arrays) orother hard-wired devices, or using mechanical devices (collectivelyreferred to herein as a “processor”). Furthermore, although theprocessor and memory device preferably reside on each gaming device 10unit, it is possible to provide some or all of their functions at acentral location such as a network server for communication to a playingstation such as over a local area network (LAN), wide area network(WAN), Internet connection, microwave link, and the like. For purposesof describing the invention, the controller includes the processor andmemory device.

Referring to FIG. 1, to operate the gaming device 10, the player mustinsert the appropriate amount of money or tokens at a coin slot or billacceptor and then pull the arm or push the play button. The frames willthen be available for selection. Eventually, at least some of the frameswill be selected to expose symbols as part of the game. As long as theplayer has selections remaining, the player can select frames again.Depending upon what the frames reveal, the player may or may not winadditional credits.

In addition to winning credits in this manner, gaming device 10preferably may also give players the opportunity to win credits in abonus round. This type of gaming device 10 will include a program thatwill automatically begin a bonus round when the player has achieved aqualifying condition in the game. This qualifying condition can be aparticular arrangement of indicia on the display window. The gamingdevice 10 also includes a display device such as a display device shownin FIG. 1 enabling the player to play the bonus round. Preferably, thequalifying condition is a predetermined combination of indicia appearingon a plurality of frames such as those provided by reels 30. Asillustrated in the three reel slot game shown in FIG. 1, the qualifyingcondition could be the text “BONUS!” appearing in the same location onthree adjacent frames.

Turning now descriptively to the drawings, in which similar referencecharacters denote similar elements throughout the several views, theattached figures illustrate a multi-opportunity, risk vs. reward,playfield-style gaming platform, which comprises a standalonevideo-based casino gaming software platform that incorporates a uniqueplayfield-style design offering players multiple opportunities to makerisk versus reward decisions that ultimately affect the outcome of gameplay. The platform can be customized with various gaming themes andcasino specified odds, payout ranges, and prizes. The software platformcontrols all functions of the game including the player interface, whichallows the player to interact with the game, the gaming engine, whichcontrols how the game plays out based upon player input, and themanagement interface, which allows the game manufacturer and casinos tocustomize various parameters of the game, employ security and gametracking measures, and access various reporting features. The playerinterface, gaming engine, and management interface are not individualcomponents, but rather functions of the software platform as a whole.Since player and management interfaces are relatively standardizedthroughout the video-based casino gaming industry, the software platformcomponent description will concentrate on the unique, game play specificfunctions of the gaming engine. Positive impact squares are assigned tothe game playfield though the software platform based upon manufacturerand casino specified odds for each “Coin-In” credit level and value ofgame play. Negative impact squares are assigned to the game playfieldthough the software platform based upon manufacturer and casinospecified odds for each “Coin-In” credit level and value of game play.Indifferent squares are assigned to the game playfield though thesoftware platform based upon manufacturer and casino specified odds foreach “Coin-In” credit level and value of game play. The status andinformation area legend is updated through the software platform andreports important game play information to players, thereby allowingthem to make more informed decisions throughout the course of theirgaming experience. Game themes consist of graphics, sound effects,animations, multimedia presentations and physical displays which may beapplied to the software platform and areas surrounding the game toattract players, maintain their interest, and provide a unique,fun-filled gaming experience.

By using a SAFE choice, the symbol revealed by a SAFE choice, alleffects of a negative impact square are neutralized. Once SAFE choicesare gone, the player may collect existing payments or proceed with theexercise of RISK choices which place some or all of the accumulatedawards at risk. Player can determine when to stop placing funds at risk.

The software platform controls all functions of the game including theplayer interface, which allows the player to interact with the game, thegaming engine, which controls how the game plays out based upon playerinput, and the management interface, which allows the game manufacturerand casinos to customize various parameters of the game, employ securityand game tracking measures, and access various reporting features. Theplayer interface, gaming engine, and management interface are notindividual components, but rather functions of the software platform asa whole. Since player and management interfaces are relativelystandardized throughout the video-based casino gaming industry, thesoftware platform component description will concentrate on the unique,game play specific functions of the gaming engine. While the RNG remainsa necessary component of slot machine and video-based casino gaming, itcan be used in a different manner to produce a new style of casino gamewith far-reaching appeal. Consider the following promotional marketingconcept: “Every Game Can Win!—The Choice Is Up To You . . . FeelingLucky?” Players will soon discover that the RNG can be used to setupinitial game play, rather than calculate a final outcome, therebyallowing players to be more in control of how their game playprogresses. The software platform utilizes the RNG to populate the gameplayfield at the start of the game and manages player interaction,choices and outcomes. Software platform functions include establishingthe layout of the game playfield, the level of player interaction basedupon allocated credits, the population of the game playfield, and themanagement and execution of game play results. Casinos will experiencenew revenue streams backed by the security of programmable game playodds. Example Game Layout—For example, as illustrated in FIG. 1, thegame may consist of a 10 by 12 “playfield area” grid, yielding 120individual cells or squares. These squares are “marked” by the RNG atthe beginning of game play to either remain empty or hold a specificcontent. The player is then instructed to select one square from the“playfield” of 120. Upon confirmation of the player's selection, theresult of the square is revealed. Hence the “playfield is set” at thevery beginning of the game and the results—positive, negative orindifferent—are determined entirely by the player's choices. Players areallowed to continue selecting squares based upon casino selectablevalues specified at each “Coin-In” credit level of play. In addition tothe game playfield, as illustrated in FIG. 1, 2, is a status andinformation area displaying a legend of the available contents in theremaining unselected squares, the number of player selections remaining,and game play messages and confirmations. Example Game “Coin-In” CreditLevels of Play—While this game may be deployed using a variety of creditdenominations, this example will employ a $1.00 credit value. Like mostforms of mechanical and video-based casino games, multiple credits maybe played to enhance possible outcomes. This example uses a 1-5 creditper play style familiar to Video Poker enthusiasts: 1 Credit-3“protected” or SAFE selections followed by 1 optional “unprotected” orRISK selection(s); 2 Credits-4 “protected” or SAFE selections followedby 2 optional “unprotected” or RISK selections; 3 Credits-5 “protected”or SAFE selections followed by 3 optional “unprotected” or RISKselections; 4 Credits-6 “protected” or SAFE selections followed by 4optional “unprotected” or RISK selections; and 5 Credits-7 “protected”or SAFE selections followed by 5 optional “unprotected” or RISKselections. The contents of a square may be positive, negative, orindifferent, however; when a player makes a “protected” or SAFEselection, the contents of negative impact squares are renderedinactive. Only when a player makes an “unprotected” or RISK selectioncan their game play be adversely affected. With each credit allocated tothe game, increases in the number of positive impact squares andadditional types of positive impact squares will be assigned to theplayfield and reflected in the status and information area legend.

Positive impact squares are assigned to the game playfield though thesoftware platform based upon manufacturer and casino specified odds foreach “Coin-In” credit level and value of game play. Types or categoriesof positive impact squares contain benefits and/or awards whichpositively affect the outcome of game play for the player. The softwareplatform will employ positive impact squares including: (I) CreditSquares, (II) Credit Match-Up Squares, (III) “WILD” Credit Match-UpSquares, (IV) Credit Multiplier Squares, (V) Spell-Out Squares in theforms of (A) Spell-Out Prize with Multiples of Component Squares, and(B) Spell-Out Prize with Single Component Squares with (1) W-I-NFeature, (2) G-A-M-E Feature, (3) B-O-N-U-S Feature, (4) J-A-C-K-P-O-TFeature, and (5) J-A-C-K-P-O-T with B-O-N-U-S Feature, (VI) SequentialCash Award Squares, (VII) Instant Win Prize Award Squares, (VIII) Remove“Empties” Squares, and (IX) “Make Safe” Selection Squares. (I) CreditSquares—Contain a positive numerical value of game play credits to beadded to the player's “credit bank” at the end of game play. This is anindependent win square; meaning that additional squares are not requiredto be selected in order for the contents of the credit square to beawarded to the player. The value of credit squares range from one creditto the casino specified maximum. In this example game, credit squarevalues will include 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 10, and 25 credits. The quantity ofeach value of credit square and the total number of credit squares isestablished by the casino for each “Coin-In” credit level of play. (II)Credit Match-Up Squares—Contain a positive numerical value of game playcredits to be added to the players “credit bank” at the end of gameplay, provided the player can match two or more of the same creditmatch-up squares. This is a dependent win square; meaning that in orderfor the player to collect the credits indicated in the square, two ormore matching squares must be selected by the player before the end ofgame play. Values of credit match-up squares along with the number ofmatching squares required to award the value of the squares arespecified by the casino. In this example game, credit match-up squarevalues will include Match-25 (2 required, 4 available), Match-50 (2req., 4 avail.), and a Tri-Match-100 (3 req., 3 avail.). If a playerselects more than the required number of the same credit match-upsquare, the player will receive the same match-up value for eachadditional match-up square as a bonus. For example, if a player uncoversfour Match-25 and 3 Match-50 credit match-up squares, the player will beawarded 25 credits for the 2 required Match-25 squares with a 50 creditbonus for the two additional Match-25 squares, and 50 credits for the 2Match-50 squares with a 50 credit bonus for the one additional Match-50square. The variety, value, number required, and number available ofcredit match-up squares is established by the casino for each “Coin-In”credit level of play. While credit match-up squares can and should beincluded on every “Coin-In” credit level of play, it is suggested thatlarger match-up values and extra matching squares be reserved for 3“Coin-In” credit or higher levels of play. (III) “WILD” Credit Match-UpSquares—This square can match with any credit match-up square and willimmediately take on the value of the first credit match-up squarerevealed. If a player has uncovered two or more different creditmatch-up squares prior to revealing the WILD match-up square, it will bematched with the highest value credit match-up square that produces acredit award. If a higher value credit match-up square is revealed, theWILD match-up square will change to match the higher value square aslong as the match produces a credit award. For example, if a player hasrevealed one Match-25 and one Tri-Match-100 followed by a WILD-Matchsquare, the WILD-Match square would pair with the Match-25, the highestvalue match-up square that produces a credit award. If the player thenreveals one Match-50, the WILD-Match square would change value to pairwith the Match-50. If the player then reveals another Tri-Match-100, theWILD-Match square would change value to match the two Tri-Match-100squares to form the required 3 match-up squares necessary to award thematch-up credit. The number of available “WILD” match-up squares isestablished by the casino for each “Coin-In” credit level of play. It issuggested that “WILD” match-up squares begin to appear on the 3“Coin-In” credit level of play, with extra “WILD” match-up squares on4-5 “Coin-In” credit levels of play. (IV) Credit MultiplierSquares—Contain a positive numerical value that acts as a multiplier tobe applied to game play credits accumulated during the round at the endof game play. This is a dependent win square, meaning that creditsquares and/or credit match-up squares meeting match-up requirements arerequired to be selected in order for the contents of the creditmultiplier square to be awarded to the player. In essence, a creditmultiplier square with no credits to multiply has no individualintrinsic value. Values of credit multiplier squares along with thenumber of available multiplier squares are specified by the casino. Inthis example game, credit multiplier square values will includeCredits-×2 (with up to 3 Credit-×2, available). If a player selects oneor more credit multiplier squares, the credit multiplier value isincreased accordingly and applied to the total number of credits wonfrom credit and/or credit match-up squares at the end of the game. Forexample, if a player uncovers two Credit-×2, a 5 credit, and twoMatch-25 squares, at the end of the round, 30 credits will be multipliedby 4 for a total of 120 credits won. The variety, value, and number ofavailable of credit multiplier squares is established by the casino foreach “Coin-In” credit level of play. It is suggested that creditmultipliers begin to appear on the 2 “Coin-In” credit level of play,with larger and extra credit multiplier squares reserved for 3-5“Coin-In” credit levels. (V) Spell-Out Squares—Contain portions of aneasily identifiable word, phrase, abbreviation, acronym, etc. thatrequires the player to uncover all component squares before the end ofthe round in order to acquire the corresponding award. Spell-out squaresare dependent win squares resulting in an all or nothing outcome andpossess no individual intrinsic value. Spell-out squares typically rangefrom 3 to 7 component squares in length and can be assigned valuesaccording to the “theme” and credit value of the game. Component squaresare not interchangeable between prizes, for example, if two or morespell-out square prizes contain the letter “O”, the component square foreach is unique and marked accordingly with graphics indicating to whichprize the component “O” belongs. To avoid confusion and buildexcitement, the legend will update an image of the prize as eachcomponent square is revealed. Some spell-out square prizes may havemultiples of certain component squares, while others populate only asingle square for each component. (A) Spell-Out Prize with Multiples ofComponent Squares—For example, the spell-out phrase “How Sweet It Is” isa 4-component square prize resulting in the award of a theme-specificprize (such as a gold bracelet), a casino-specified credit bonus, or atheme-specific bonus round. The components of the phrase are “How”,“Sweet”, “It” and “Is”. During game play, two “How”, one “Sweet”, two“It”, and two “Is” component squares may populate the field. Regardlessof how many “How”, “It”, and “Is” components the player acquires, thesingle “Sweet” component is required to win. Every game, the componentsare randomized so only one becomes a single instance component while theremaining components are assigned to multiple squares. This keeps gameplay fresh as the player is unaware if they have revealed the singleinstance component square of the spell-out prize. (B) Spell-Out Prizewith Single Component Squares—There are certain common words ideal forspell-out prizes, including certain auto manufacturers and models suchas C-H-E-V-Y, D-O-D-G-E, C-A-M-R-Y, and H-U-M-M-E-R to name a few. EvenT-R-I-P, T-R-U-C-K or J-E-T-S-K-I can be used for prizes at the casino'sdiscretion based upon credit value and “Coin-In” level of play. Thereare several reserved spell-out prizes with single component squares thatinvoke additional “bonus rounds” of game play or a progressive payout.These terms are W-I-N, G-A-M-E, B-O-N-U-S, and J-A-C-K-P-O-T, whichbecome available at the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th “Coin-In” levels of playrespectively. Optionally, graphical elements may be used in place ofeach of the individual Spell-Out Prize Component Square letters tostreamline the appearance of the legend and the playfield and reducepotential player confusion. When a player uncovers the final componentof the spell-out prize W-I-N, a special feature is activated. (1) W-I-NFeature—Each letter appears to “spin”, displaying random credit valuesbetween a casino-established maximum and minimum range, based on the“Coin-In” level of play. The player is instructed to choose one of the“spinning W-I-N” squares, which locks in a randomly selected number ofcredits. This continues until each W-I-N square displays a locked-innumber of credits. These credits are then added to the round totalcredits, which can be affected by credit multiplier squares, and normalgame play resumes. In this example game, the minimum and maximum rangesfor each “Coin-In” level of play are 10-40 for 2 credits, 30-60 for 3credits, 50-80 for 4 credits, and 70-100 for 5 credits. In lieu of theW-I-N Feature, a micro-progressive or fixed amount jackpot may beawarded at the casino's discretion, based on the credit value of theassociated games. An alternative W-I-N feature will launch a separatebonus screen from which the player may choose from a variety of graphicelements on the screen to reveal their W-I-N bonus. After the playerreceives their revealed bonus, the remaining graphic elements reveal theunselected bonus amounts, the playfield is restored, and game playcontinues. When a player uncovers the final component of the spell-outprize G-A-M-E, a special round and playfield is immediately launched.(2) G-A-M-E Feature—The new G-A-M-E playfield consists of a grid offifteen squares, each containing random credit values based upon the“Coin-In” level of play. Nine of the squares will contain average randomcredit values, four of the squares will contain above average randomcredit values, and the remaining two squares will contain large randomcredit values. The player is instructed to pick one square at a time upto the number of credits played. In other words: 3 selections for 3credits; 4 selections for 4 credits; and 5 selections for 5 credits.After each selection, the credit value for the selected square isrevealed. After all selections have been made, the credits from theselected squares are added to the round total credits, which can beaffected by credit multiplier squares, the remaining G-A-M-E squares arebriefly revealed to the player, the original game playfield returns, andnormal game play resumes. In this example game, the minimum and maximumG-A-M-E playfield square credit value ranges for each “Coin-In” level ofplay are: 25-50 (average), 50-75 (above avg.), and 100-150 (large) for 3credits; 50-75 (average), 75-100 (above avg.), and 150-200 (large) for 4credits; 75-100 (average), 100-125 (above avg.), and 200-250 (large) for5 credits. When a player uncovers the final component of the spell-outprize B-O-N-U-S, the game is immediately frozen, and a “summonattendant” signal is issued. (3) B-O-N-U-S Feature—Upon arrival, theattendant notifies the player of the magnitude of the B-ON-U-S prize,unfreezes the game, and remains to assist the player with any questionsconcerning the completion of the game play round. At the end of theround, if the player has not lost or otherwise forfeited the B-O-N-U-Sprize by making an “unprotected” or RISK selection of a negative impactsquare, the player is escorted to a VIP area and prepared to participatein the B-O-N-U-S game. The B-O-N-U-S game consists of a physical displaylocated in close proximity to the game, and decorated in accordance withthe game's underlying design them. At a pre-scheduled time, the playeris escorted to the display with abundant fanfare and cheering fromon-looking casino patrons who have been earlier notified of the event.The player is introduced to the crowd and prompted to select one oftwenty game-themed “boxes”. The prize, of significant value inaccordance with the credit value of the game, and chosen specifically tomatch the theme of the game, is removed from the selected box andrevealed to the player and attending audience. The entire event iscaptured on video, which will be displayed as part of the “attract mode”of the games, used for casino promotion, and given to the player as agift and memory of their “big win”. Should the player elect to notparticipate in the B-O-N-U-S game or refuse sign the release formsnecessary to record and replay the event, a cash award equal to the fairmarket value of the smallest prize will be alternately awarded. In lieuof the B-O-N-U-S Feature, a mini-progressive or fixed amount jackpot maybe awarded at the casino's discretion, based on the credit value of theassociated games. When a player uncovers the final component of thehighest level spell-out prize J-A-C-K-P-O-T, both the game andProgressive Jackpot meter are immediately frozen, and a “summonattendant” signal is issued. (4) J-A-C-K-P-O-T Feature—Upon arrival, theattendant notifies the player of the immense magnitude of theJ-A-C-K-P-O-T prize, unfreezes the game, and remains to assist theplayer with any questions concerning the completion of the game playround. At the end of the round, if the player has not lost or otherwiseforfeited the J-A-C-K-P-O-T prize by making an “unprotected” or RISKselection of a negative impact square, the player is escorted to a VIParea and awarded the amount of the Progressive Jackpot. The presentationof an over-sized check made out to the player in the amount of theProgressive Jackpot is captured on video, which will be displayed aspart of the “attract mode” of the games, used for casino promotion, andgiven to the player as a gift and memory of their “big win”. (5)J-A-C-K-P-O-T with B-O-N-U-S Feature—Available only on the 5th “Coin-In”level of play, this feature requires all seven J-A-C-K-P-O-T and allfive B-O-N-U-S letters to be revealed. This is the most difficult awardto achieve, and upon winning, the player receives the opportunity toparticipate in the B-O-N-U-S game, the Progressive Jackpot, and a$5,000,000 Super Prize awarded in either a lump sum or annualinstallments. The entire event, including the B-O-N-U-S game and thepresentation of both over-sized Progressive Jackpot and 5 Million Dollarchecks, is captured on video, which will be displayed as part of the“attract mode” of the games, used for casino promotion, and given to theplayer as a gift and memory of their “big win”. In lieu of theJ-A-C-K-P-O-T with B-O-N-U-S Feature, a multi-tier progressive jackpotsystem may be employed with “Mini-Pot”, “Midi-Pot”, and “Mega-Pot”progressive jackpot meters or fixed amount jackpots (corresponding to 5,6, and 7 letter Spell-Out Prize with Single Component Squares) to beawarded at the casino's discretion, based on the credit value of theassociated games. In such case, the player would receive multiplejackpots for revealing all necessary squares for multiple Spell-Outprizes. (VI) Sequential Cash Award Squares—Contain a single-digitpositive numerical value that sequentially fills the Cash Prize in thelegend from right to left. These squares begin to appear on the 3“Coin-In” credit level of play with one square for each “Coin-In” creditplayed. The values of each square range from 1 to the “Coin-In” creditlevel played. In other words, for our example game: On the 3 “Coin-In”credit level there are 3 squares containing the numbers 1-3; On the 4“Coin-In” credit level there are 4 squares containing the numbers 1-4;On the 5 “Coin-In” credit level there are 5 squares containing thenumbers 1-5. Each time a sequential cash award square is revealed, theCash Prize gains an additional digit based on the value of the squarerevealed. The Cash Prize is awarded at the successful completion of thegame play round and selection of the cash-out button either as aredeemable “dispensed ticket” or by attendant payout depending upon thesize of the cash prize. Sequential Cash Awards are cash prizes and,unlike credits acquired through credit and credit match-up squares, arenot affected by credit multiplier squares. In our example, a 3 “Coin-In”game can generate the following Cash Prizes: $0.10, $0.20, $0.30, $1.20,$1.30, $2.10, $2.30, $3.10, $3.20, $12.30, $13.20, $21.30, $23.10,$31.20 & $32.10. A 4 “Coin-In” game would have maximum Cash Prize of$432.10 and a 5 “Coin-In” game would have a maximum Cash Prize of$5,432.10. The quantity and numeric value of sequential cash awardsquares can be customized according to credit value. For example, a$0.50 credit value game may utilize only three sequential cash awardsquares beginning with one square at the 3 “Coin-In” level of play, andadding additional squares on 4-5 “Coin-In” levels for maximum payouts of$0.30, $3.20, and $32.10 respectively. A $5 credit value game wouldfeature the full five sequential cash award squares with no decimalplaces and values randomly ranging from 1-9 for a maximum potentialpayout of $99,999. (VII) Instant Win Prize Award Squares—Contain agraphic representation of a prize to be awarded to the player at the endof game play. This is a single win square; meaning that additionalsquares are not required to be selected in order for the contents of theinstant win prize square to be awarded to the player. Instant Win Prizesare typically property specific awards, such as casino-brandedmerchandise, dining and spa gift certificates, show tickets, rounds ofgolf, and transportation and room vouchers. Basically, anything thecasino typically uses as a “comp” can be integrated as an Instant WinPrize, thereby allowing both the casual and dedicated player theopportunity of winning rewards that are typically reserved for tablegame players. Availability and frequency of Instant Win Prizes areassigned based upon “Coin-In” credit level of play and credit value ofthe game. The legend will reflect the number of included Instant WinPrizes; however, the player will not know which prizes have beenassigned to the game round. Higher “cost” Instant Win Prizes maypopulate less frequently than prizes whose “value” greatly exceeds theirinternal “cost” to the casino. For example, a $0.50 credit value gamemay offer T-shirts, leather jackets, poker chip sets, buffet vouchersand room upgrades as Instant Win Prizes with the lower “cost” T-shirtsand buffet vouchers appearing most frequently. A $5 credit value gamemay offer premium seating at popular on-property shows, complete mealsat signature dining venues, full-day spa experiences, value-specifiedshopping sprees at on-property merchants, and return trip airfare andaccommodations for a future on-property stay, with the lower “cost”full-day spa experience, signature dining, and return trip withaccommodations appearing most frequently. Instant Win Prizes are notsubject to credit multiplier squares; however, they can be adverselyaffected by negative impact squares. For casinos not wishing to offerphysical prizes, comp points may be awarded either by posting directlyto an inserted Player's Card or printed on a redeemable “dispensedticket”. This feature may also be disabled with no Instant Win squaresappearing in the game. (VII) Remove “Empties” Squares—Contain asingle-digit positive numerical value of empty squares to be revealedand removed from the current round of game play. This is an actionsquare, meaning that it holds no intrinsic value to be won or lost, andupon selection, empty squares are randomly removed immediately, and theplayer is instructed to select again, as revealing a Remove “Empties”square does not cost the player a selection. The removal of emptysquares increases the odds that the player will select a positive impactsquare while making their “protected” or SAFE selections. Squares thatare marked to contain negative impact results when the selections become“unprotected” or RISK selections will not be affected. Removing aquantity of empty squares aids the player during their “protected” orSAFE selection stage, yet also increases the general odds of the playerselecting a negative impact square during the “unprotected” or RISKselection stage. In our example game, a Remove-5 “Empties” square willbe added at each “Coin-In” level of play from 1-4 for a maximum possibletotal of 5, 10, 15, and 20 empty squares to be removed on each levelrespectively. To increase the speed of game play, this feature may bedisabled. (IX) “Make Safe” Selection Squares—Contain a single-digitpositive numerical value of “unprotected” or RISK selections to convertto “protected” or SAFE selections during the current round of game play.This is an action square, meaning that it holds no intrinsic value to bewon or lost, and upon selection, the specified number of “unprotected”or RISK selections is immediately converted to “protected” or SAFEselections, the player is notified of the change (i.e. “You now have 8protected or SAFE and 4 unprotected or RISK selections”) and instructedto select again as revealing a “Make Safe” Selection square does notcost the player a selection. It simply converts a specified number ofremaining “unprotected” or RISK selections into “protected” or SAFEselections. These squares begin to appear on the 3 “Coin-In” creditlevel of play, and the number and value of available “Make Safe”Selection squares should not meet or exceed the quantity of“unprotected” or RISK selections on each level. For example: The 3“Coin-In” credit level contains 2 Safe-I Selection Squares; The 4“Coin-In” credit level contains 3 Safe-1 Selection Squares; The 5“Coin-In” credit level contains 2 Safe-1 and 1 Safe-2 Selection Squares.In this configuration, even if all “Make Safe” Selection squares arerevealed, the player will still have the opportunity to make at leastone “unprotected” or RISK selection during game play. If a playerreveals a “Make Safe” Selection square on an “unprotected” or RISKselection, they are prompted to select again, only this time as a“protected” or SAFE selection. After the “Make Safe” Selection has beenmade, the player returns to their remaining “unprotected” or RISKselections. If a player reveals a Safe-2 “Make Safe” Selection square ontheir last selection, they will be prompted to select again as a“protected” or SAFE selection. However, since there are no remaining“unprotected” or RISK selections to convert to “protected” or SAFEstatus, the second “Make Safe” Selection remains unused, and the roundends. To increase the speed of game play, this feature may be disabled.

Negative impact squares are assigned to the game playfield though thesoftware platform based upon manufacturer and casino specified odds foreach “Coin-In” credit level and value of game play. Types or categoriesof negative impact squares contain drawbacks and/or forfeitures whichadversely affect the outcome of game play for the player and are activeonly when the player makes an “unprotected” or RISK selection. Thesoftware platform will employ negative impact squares including: (I) EndRound Squares, (II) Lose Spell-Out Squares, (III) Lose Credit MultiplierSquares, (IV) Lose Sequential Cash Award Squares, (V) Lose Instant WinPrize Award Squares, (VI) Lose ½ Acquired Credits Squares, (VII) LoseALL Acquired Credits Squares, (VIII) Variations of Negative ImpactSquares. (I) End Round Squares—Contain a themed graphic indicating theround has come to an end. This is an action square, meaning that itseffect is immediate. Of all the negative impact squares, this is theleast damaging, merely forcing the player to lose any remaining“unprotected” or RISK selections. The round terminates with any winningsbeing delivered to the player. (II) Lose Spell-Out Squares—Contain athemed graphic indicating that the player must forfeit all Spell-Outsquares accumulated. This is an action square, meaning that its effectis immediate. If a player has a completed Spell-Out square prize, it isalso immediately forfeited. The player may continue to acquire remainingSpell-Out squares after uncovering this square; however, any previouslyselected Spell-Out squares that are lost as a result cannot be recoveredin this round. (III) Lose Credit Multiplier Squares—Contain a themedgraphic indicating that the player must forfeit all Credit Multipliersquares accumulated. This is an action square, meaning that its effectis immediate. The player may continue to acquire remaining CreditMultiplier squares after uncovering this square; however, any previouslyselected Credit Multiplier squares that are lost as a result cannot berecovered in this round. (IV) Lose Sequential Cash Award Squares—Containa themed graphic indicating that the player must forfeit all SequentialCash Award squares accumulated. This is an action square, meaning thatits effect is immediate. The player may continue to acquire remainingSequential Cash Award squares after uncovering this square; however, anypreviously selected Sequential Cash Award squares that are lost as aresult cannot be recovered in this round. (V) Lose Instant Win PrizeAward Squares—Contain a themed graphic indicating that the player mustforfeit all Instant Win Prize Award squares accumulated. This is anaction square, meaning that its effect is immediate. The player maycontinue to acquire remaining Instant Win Prize Award squares afteruncovering this square; however, any previously selected Instant WinPrize Award squares that are lost as a result cannot be recovered inthis round. (VI) Lose ½ Acquired Credits Squares—Contain a themedgraphic indicating that the player must forfeit ½ of their accumulatedcredits. This includes credits received through Credit and CreditMatch-Up squares, as well as the W-I-N and G-A-M-E features. This is anaction square, meaning that its effect is immediate. The player maycontinue to acquire credits after uncovering this square. CreditMatch-Up squares continue to function normally, even if ½ of the creditsawarded for an existing match are lost. (VII) Lose ALL Acquired CreditsSquares—Contain a themed graphic indicating that the player must forfeitALL of their accumulated credits. This includes credits received throughCredit and Credit Match-Up squares, as well as the W-I-N and G-A-M-Efeatures. This is an action square, meaning that its effect isimmediate. The player may continue to acquire credits after uncoveringthis square. Credit Match-Up squares continue to function normally, evenif ALL of the credits awarded for an existing match are lost. (VIII)Variations of Negative Impact Squares—Contain combinations of two ormore types of negative impact squares at the discretion of the casino(i.e. Lose it ALL). Negative impact squares are initially deployed bythe RNG at the beginning of the round; however, they remain inactiveuntil the player reaches their first “unprotected” or RISK selection. Atthe casino's discretion, negative impact squares may be completely orpartially deployed throughout the “unprotected” or RISK selectionsaccording to each “Coin-In” credit level of play. In our example game,negative impact squares are deployed as follows: The 1 “Coin-In” creditlevel 100% on 1st and only “unprotected” or RISK selection; The 2“Coin-In” credit level 50% each on 1st-2nd “unprotected” or RISKselections; The 3 “Coin-In” credit level 33% each on 1st-3rd“unprotected” or RISK selections; The 4 “Coin-In” credit level 25% eachon 1st-4th “unprotected” or RISK selections; and The 5 “Coin-In” creditlevel 20% each on 1st-5th “unprotected” or RISK selections. At thecasino's discretion, the game can inform the player of the number ofactive negative impact squares and/or risk percentage of selecting anegative impact square prior to each “unprotected” or RISK selection. Ifa player selects a negative impact square during a “protected” or SAFEselection or an inactive negative impact square during an “unprotected”or RISK selection, the “penalty” is revealed to the player and thesquare is “destroyed” rendering it harmless. While neither helping norharming the player, the player's overall odds of winning are slightlyaffected. It should also be noted that a player is not required to makeany “unprotected” or RISK selections. Electing to risk losing the valueassociated with prior “protected” or SAFE selections is completelyvoluntary. The player may choose to end the game after making all oftheir “protected” selections or prior to making any “unprotected” orRISK selection. To increase the speed of game play and reduce potentialplayer confusion, a single type of negative impact square may beemployed and populated throughout the playfield at the beginning of gameplay. All instances of this negative impact square become immediatelyactive after the player finishes making their “protected” or SAFEselections. Revealing any negative impact square during an “unprotected”or RISK selection results in the player losing all accumulated winningsand immediately ends the round of game play.

Indifferent squares are assigned to the game playfield though thesoftware platform based upon manufacturer and casino specified odds foreach “Coin-In” credit level and value of game play. Types or categoriesof indifferent squares neither help nor harm the player. The primarypurpose of these squares is to adjust the player's overall odds ofwinning. The software platform will employ indifferent squaresincluding: (I) Empty Squares and (II) Inactive Negative Impact Squares.(I) Empty Squares—Contain a themed graphic indicating an empty square.There is no value or action associated with this square. Upon beingrevealed as empty, the square is “destroyed”. (II) Inactive NegativeImpact Squares—Contain a themed graphic indicating the specific drawbackand/or forfeiture assigned. Upon being revealed, the player is notifiedthat the square is inactive, either due to their selection being“protected” or SAFE or an “unprotected” or RISK selection of a negativeimpact square that has yet to be activated, and the square is“destroyed” rendering it harmless. The calculated deployment of positiveimpact, negative impact and indifferent squares allows the casino tocustom-tailor the odds of winning specific prizes, as well as thegeneral odds of winning on each “Coin-In” credit level of play. Even so,the player will be made well aware of the fact that their gamingexperience is not an RNG predetermined win or loss, but an intricateinterplay of their own luck coupled with their decision to risk currentwinnings to potentially unlock even greater rewards.

The playfield approach may also be adapted to video poker as well, withthe entire deck of 52 electronic cards making up the playfield, and theplayer selecting their initial five card hand and discard replacementsfrom all available choices on-screen. At the end of game play, theplayfield is revealed. Unlike traditional video poker, where the playerwill only be exposed to a maximum of the first ten cards of the“shuffled” deck, our playfield approach puts every possible choice infront of the player throughout the entire game. At the end of game play,the player sees where everything is on the playfield and, unliketraditional video poker, isn't left wondering “What would have happenedif I had played my hand differently?” Additionally, bonuses such ascredit multipliers, bonus games, etc. may be hidden within theplayfield, appearing either as extra “cards” on the playfield or as“attachments” to specific cards on the playfield. The bonuses andattachments may also be associated with the frames in which the cardsare provided, within the frames, adjacent the frames, under the framesand the like. This adds yet another exciting dimension to traditionalvideo poker by allowing the player to “discover” these bonuses byphysically making their card selections from the playfield. In a VideoPoker type format, for the purpose of this example, bonuses will be“attachments” to specific cards on the playfield. By utilizing thisapproach, bonuses may be lost or forfeited if the player discards a cardto which the bonus is “attached”. Bonuses “attached” to cards mayinclude but are not limited to: (I) Credit Multipliers, (II) BonusGames, and (III) Instant Win Prizes. The game of video poker itselfbecomes revitalized, as players will no longer be able to rely on theirstrategy cards to make the right move for the highest possible return ontheir game play. Cards in their hands that they would normally discardin favor of building a stronger hand may suddenly be seen asintrinsically more valuable if a particular bonus happens to be“attached” to them.

(I) Credit Multipliers—Contain a positive numerical value that acts as amultiplier to be applied to game play credits accumulated during theround at the end of game play. This is a dependent win bonus, meaningthat the player must acquire a winning poker hand as defined in the paytable in order for the associated winning hand value (also defined inthe pay table) to be multiplied by the value of the creditmultiplier(s). In essence, credit multiplier bonuses without a winninghand value to multiply have no individual intrinsic value. Values ofcredit multiplier bonuses along with the number of available multiplierbonuses are specified by the casino. In this example game, creditmultiplier values include Credit Multiplier [×2]-[×3] with two CreditMultiplier [×2] and two Credit Multiplier [×3] bonuses available. If aplayer selects one or more cards with credit multiplier bonusesattached, the credit multiplier value is increased accordingly andapplied to the total number of credits won for a winning poker hand asdefined in the pay table at the end of the game. For example, if aplayer uncovers two cards with Credit Multiplier [×2] and CreditMultiplier [×3] attached, and at the end of the round the player has awinning poker hand containing the two “bonus attached” cards that awards20 credits, those 20 credits will be multiplied by the Bonus Multipliervalue, which in this case is 5 (the multiplier values are added toarrive at the Bonus Multiplier value—thus 2+3=5) for a total of 100credits won. The variety, value, and number of available creditmultiplier bonuses is established by the casino for each “Coin-In”credit level of play. Typical deployment scenarios would set the maximumBonus Multiplier value at 10 with up to five Credit Multiplier “bonusattachments” in play at a given time. However, these values may bealtered at the casino's discretion. It is suggested that creditmultipliers be reserved for the highest “Coin-In” credit levels of play,with the option of charging additional credits beyond the video pokerstandard maximum of 5 “Coin-In” credits for the addition of CreditMultiplier bonuses to the game. In our example, one Credit Multiplier[×2] bonus and one Credit Multiplier [×3] bonus become available at the6 “Coin-In” credit level of play for a maximum Credit Multiplier valueof 5. The remaining Credit Multiplier [×2] and Credit Multiplier [×3]bonuses become available at the 7 “Coin-In” credit level of play for amaximum Credit Multiplier value of 10.

(II) Bonus Games—Contain a graphic representation indicating a specificBonus Game to be awarded to the player at the end of game play shouldthe player obtain a winning poker hand as defined in the pay table. Inorder for the Bonus Game to be awarded, the card to which the Bonus Gameis “attached” must remain in the player's hand at the end of the gameplay. The number and type of bonus games available may be selected bythe casino with property-specific customization options available.Further, at the casino's discretion, the Bonus Game may employ either astatic or variable award valuation mechanism. In other words, if astatic approach is used, regardless of the rank or the player's winninghand, the minimum and maximum award values of the Bonus Game remainconstant—the same values are used if the player wins with a pair ofJacks or four-of-a-kind. If a variable valuation mechanism is selected,the rank of the player's winning hand is factored into determining theminimum and maximum award values of the Bonus Game. A player awarded aBonus Game based upon a Royal Flush winning hand will have asignificantly higher value Bonus Game than a player with a winning handof two-pair. In this example, the Bonus Game consists of a playfieldcontaining 20 face-down cards corresponding to the 10, Jack, Queen,King, and Ace of each Suit. The player is instructed to select fivecards from the playfield to generate their Bonus Game hand. Nearly everypossible hand, given the cards in play, will result in a Bonus Gameaward based upon the rank of the hand the player creates in the BonusGame. Again, the awards may be further affected by the rank of theplayer's winning hand that launched the Bonus Game if the variablevaluation mechanism is employed to determine the minimum and maximumlevels of the Bonus Game award. In other words, credits would be awardedfor a pair of Jacks or better, two-pair, 3-of-a-kind, straight, fullhouse, 4-of-a-kind, and a Royal Flush based upon rank. The only hand notresulting in a Bonus Game award would be a pair of 10's, in which caseeither no credits or a consolation bonus may be awarded at the casino'sdiscretion. Ranked Bonus Game winning hands may also be furthersub-divided by card values or suit, resulting in even more potentialaward combinations (i.e. pairs of Kings or Aces ranking higher thanJacks or Queens and a Spade-suited Royal Flush ranking higher thanHearts, Clubs, or Diamonds). At the end of the Bonus Game, the creditsawarded are added directly to the player's bank. Since the Bonus Game isplayed as a separate round after the player has won their video pokerhand with the Bonus Game “attachment”, credits awarded as a result ofBonus Game play are not subject to the Credit Multiplier. It issuggested that the Bonus Game be reserved for the highest “Coin-In”credit levels of play, with the option of charging additional creditsbeyond the video poker standard maximum of 5 “Coin-In” credits for theaddition of Bonus Game functionality. In our example, the Bonus Gamebecomes available at the 7 “Coin-In” credit level of play.

(III) Instant Win Prizes—Contain a graphic representation of a prize or“mystery prize” to be awarded to the player at the end of game playshould the player obtain a winning poker hand as defined in the paytable. In order for an Instant Win Prize to be awarded, the card towhich the Instant Win Prize is “attached” must remain in the player'shand at the end of the game play. At the Casino's discretion, thevariable valuation mechanism may be employed, resulting in the value ofthe Instant Win Prize award increasing with the rank of the player'swinning poker hand. For example, a winning hand of four-of-a-kind wouldresult in a significantly higher value Instant Win Prize than for a pairof Jacks. Otherwise, a static approach may be used in which the rank ofthe winning hand plays no role in the selection of the Instant Win Prizeawarded. Instant Win Prizes are typically property specific awards, suchas casino-branded merchandise, dining and spa gift certificates, showtickets, rounds of golf, transportation and room vouchers. Basically,anything the casino typically uses as a “comp” can be integrated as anInstant Win Prize (even “comp points” awarded directly to the player'scard or by a printed redeemable ticket), thereby allowing the casual aswell as dedicated player the opportunity of winning awards typicallyreserved for table game players. Availability and frequency of InstantWin Prizes are assigned based upon “Coin-In” credit level of play andcredit value of the game. Higher “cost” Instant Win Prizes may populatefar less frequently than prizes whose “value” greatly exceeds theirinternal “cost” to the casino. For example, a $0.50 credit value gamemay offer casino-branded T-shirts and jackets, poker chip sets, buffetvouchers and room upgrades as Instant Win Prizes with the lower “cost”T-shirts and buffet vouchers appearing most frequently. A $5 creditvalue game may offer premium seating at popular on-property shows,vouchers for meals at featured dining venues, signature spa treatments,value-specified shopping sprees at on-property merchants, and returntrip airfare and accommodations for future on-property stays, with thelower “cost” signature spa treatments, featured dining and return tripvouchers appearing most frequently. It is suggested that Instant WinPrizes be reserved for the highest “Coin-In” credit levels of play, withthe option of charging additional credits beyond the video pokerstandard maximum of 5 “Coin-In” credits for the addition of Instant WinPrizes. In our example, Instant Win Prizes become available at the 7“Coin-In” credit level of play. As an optional feature to be implementedat the casino's discretion, the Instant Win Prize to be awarded may beselected by the player via a bonus-round style display where the playermakes their choice from a variety of on-screen graphics, eachcorresponding to a hidden Instant Win Prize. Instant Win Prizes are notsubject to credit multipliers.

This unique concept of randomly “attaching” various bonuses to the cardsmay be applied to the current installed base of video poker machines, orvirtually any version of a card-based game for that matter. Thisenhancement allows players to choose between traditional video pokerplay, or for an extra credit or two, a revitalized video pokerexperience in which the player has new choices and decisions to make toheighten their overall enjoyment of a new, novel approach to game play.This approach allows us to capitalize on a tremendous installed base ofexisting video poker machines. Rather than replacing them with new gameswith new rules to master, we can instead offer players a new way ofplaying their favorites by incorporating the playfield approach to videopoker, the bonus “attachments” to randomly selected cards, or both ofthese novel concepts. The result is an enhanced player experiencefeaturing new and exciting ways of winning on classic, proven games,coupled with significantly improved casino revenues generated from theslight increase in cost of play to take advantage of these new bonusmethods.

Additional customization options to further enhance game play mayinclude but are not limited to: (I) Pay to Continue Playing Your Game,(II) Single Press or Double-Touch Selection Instead of Confirm Buttonand (III) Random Pick Button.

(I) Pay to Continue Playing Your Game—This option becomes available atthe end of game play and may be configured to appear on winning games,losing games or not at all. At the end of game play, prior to the revealof the playfield, the player is offered the option of reselecting their“draw” cards to replace their discards by paying a casino-specifiedamount of credits up to their maximum bet. The selected and discardedcards remain visible on the playfield while the remaining unselectedcards are reshuffled and dispersed across the playfield. The player isthen granted the opportunity to select their “draw” cards again from theplayfield. Based upon odds calculations, the Pay to Continue PlayingYour Game option may be offered once or multiple, successive times onthe same round of game play, or not at all. This approach may also beused to integrate the playfield approach into triple, five, and ten playversions of video poker.

(II) Single Press or Double-Touch Selection Instead of Confirm Button—Inthe interest of increasing the overall speed of game play, the ConfirmButton functionality may be deactivated, resulting in the immediateselection of the card with a single press of the screen by the player.While resulting in a faster game, accidental or inaccurate screenpresses may result in player annoyance. A Double-Touch Selection processmay then be employed with the first screen press highlighting theselected card following by a subsequent press of the same card forconfirmation. While actually resulting in more screen presses than usingthe Confirm Button, less overall hand movement is required, which mayresult in reduced player fatigue and longer play sessions. Given thatmost computer-savvy players are familiar with the “double-click” of amouse, the Double-Touch Selection method is an easy concept to masterand affords an extra level of safety against accidental player screentouches. The Double-Touch Selection method may also be used inconjunction with an active Confirm Button, thereby allowing players touse either method to make their selections.

(III) Random Pick Button—In the interest of increasing the overall speedof game play and adding a novel approach to the selection process, aRandom Pick button may be employed to randomly make one or moreselections from the displayed deck. The number of random selections madeis determined by the number of cards the player has already selectedduring the Deal as well as during the Draw. Naturally, the player maymanually or randomly select only the same number of discards during theDraw. For example, if the player is in the process of making their Dealselections and has already selected three cards from the displayed deck,pressing the Random Pick button will result in two random cards beingselected. Pressing the Random Pick button when no cards have beenselected during the Deal will result in all five cards being selectedrandomly. Since Draw selections are made based upon the number ofdiscards, pressing the Random Pick button during the Draw selectionresults in the same number of cards discarded being selected. The playerstill has the option of selecting one or more Draw cards manually up tothe total number of cards discarded and/or using the Random Pick buttonto complete their selection or not at all. The Random Pick button may bepressed repeatedly, resulting in the random reselection of the samenumber of cards that were randomly selected. This allows the player theoption of selecting desired cards, if any, and pressing the Random Pickbutton any number of times until such time as they are aestheticallypleased with the “pattern” of selected cards in the playfield deck. Thefeature opens the door to enhanced playability for players who have a“gut feel” on how they want their card selections distributed across theplayfield as well as those players who follow certain beliefs orsuperstitions based upon numbers or touching the machine in a specificmanner or number of times. In this configuration, the Confirm buttonmust still be pressed to accept and validate the card selections made.As an option, the Random Pick button may be configured to randomlychoose and confirm the card selections in a single button press, therebyallowing for only a single press of the Random Pick button. The RandomPick button may be enabled or disabled at the casino's discretion.

The status and information area legend is updated through the softwareplatform and reports important game play information to players, therebyallowing them to make more informed decisions throughout the course oftheir gaming experience. The status and information area legendcorresponds to a portion of the screen reserved to notify the player ofvarious game statistics as well as prompt the player for action. Incertain situations, games may be deployed with a secondary screen todisplay this information with the primary screen reserved for the gameplayfield, animation and multimedia sequences. The software platformwill initially populate the status and information area legend with databased upon the players selected “Coin-In” credit level of play andperform updates after each selection is made by the player. Displayedinformation may include but is not limited to: (I) Selections Remaining,(II) Positive Impact Squares, (III) Negative Impact Squares, (IV)Indifferent Squares, (V) Bet, Total So Far, Paid, and “Bank” Credits,(VI) Multiplier Status, (VII) Prize Status, and (VIII) Selection Odds.(I) Selections Remaining—Displays the number of “protected” or SAFE and“unprotected” or RISK selections the player has remaining. (II) PositiveImpact Squares—Displays the total and individual number of eachcorresponding type of positive impact square available on the playfield,as well as those selected by the player. (III) Negative ImpactSquares—Displays the total number of active negative impact squares onthe playfield, as well as those selected by the player. (IV) IndifferentSquares—Displays the total number of empty and inactive negative impactsquares on the playfield, as well as those selected by the player. (V)Bet, Total So Far, Paid, and “Bank” Credits—Displays the total number ofcredits the player has bet, has accumulated during the round, has wonand been paid at the end of the round, and has remaining in their“credit bank” to continue playing or cash out, (VI) MultiplierStatus—Displays the value of the credit multiplier for the current roundbased upon player selections, (VII) Prize Status—Displays any prizes theplayer may have accumulated during the current round, and (VIII)Selection Odds—Displays the odds of the player's next selectionresulting in a positive, negative, or indifferent result. To increasethe speed of game play and reduce potential player confusion, (II)Positive Impact Squares, (III) Negative Impact Squares, (IV) IndifferentSquares, (VII) Prize Status, and (VIII) Selection Odds may be displayedonly when the player selects an Info/Stats button to view thisinformation, or not displayed at all at the casino's discretion.

Game themes consist of graphics, sound effects, animations, multi-mediapresentations and physical displays which may be applied to the softwareplatform and areas surrounding the game to attract players, maintaintheir interest, and provide a unique, fun-filled gaming experience. Gamethemes are the exterior packaging or “skin” that encloses the softwareplatform and surrounding hardware displays. They compliment themechanics behind the software with storyline, background, sights andsounds, and various other elements that enrich the gaming experience andappeal to and attract players. The software platform may be “wrapped” ina variety of themes including but not limited to the following uniqueand somewhat whimsical themes: (I) Liquid Gold, (II) Buried TreasureHunt, (III) Inside Job, and (IV) Safe Cracker. (I) Liquid Gold—This gameis themed around a beehive, with the playfield “squares” in the form ofhexagons making up a honeycomb. When the player makes and confirms aselection the following animated results are displayed: Positive impactsquares “ooze” with golden honey or royal jelly, depending upon value,which then “morphs” into a representation of the square's contents.Negative impact squares reveal an angry bee, which proceeds to “attack”the player by revealing the drawback or forfeiture if the square isactive. If the square is inactive, the angry bee is swatted, squashed,sprayed with bug-spray, or otherwise dispatched. Empty squares revealdust, cobwebs, a “room-for-rent” sign, or other amusing representationsof the square having no significant contents. Prizes are themed aroundgold and golden items which may include gold coins, gold jewelry, “GoldCoast” vacations, and possibly even a gold-painted Hummer. The B-O-N-U-Sgame physical display will resemble a honeycomb with 20 large hexagonal“cells” from which the player may select. Each cell randomly containsgold bars weighing between a casino-specified minimum and maximumamount. The game also features a display showing the current gold marketprice per ounce. (II) Buried Treasure Hunt—This game is themed aroundfinding pirate's buried treasure where “X” marks the spot for hiddenpirate booty. The playfield consists of a sandy beach with dunes andpalm trees, and a variety of “X” marks in the sand. The “X” marks may bedrawn, formed by shells, sticks, sand-dollars, coconuts, skulls, crossedtrees, bones, swords, etc. with each “X” corresponding to a playfieldsquare. When the player makes and confirms a selection, the followinganimated results are displayed: Positive impact squares dig up a chestthat opens to reveal gold coins, jewels, etc., depending upon value,which then “morph” into a representation of the square's contents.Negative impact squares reveal a cleverly placed pirate's trap which issprung on the player by revealing the drawback or forfeiture if thesquare is active. If the square is inactive, the trap is sprung butfails to snare or otherwise damage the player. Example traps can includeblow darts, falling boulders, trap-doors, spring launching platforms,octopus tentacles, hidden spikes, and even a pirate's ghost. Emptysquares dig up old boots, a laughing skull, a “Wilson® volleyball” witha face on it, fish bones, an “ocean-view for sale” sign, or otheramusing representations of the square having no significant contents.Prizes are themed around pirate's buried treasure which may includedoubloons, gems, actual recovered shipwreck booty, Caribbean or tropicalisland vacations, and possibly even a boat or pair of jet-skis flyingthe “jolly roger”. The B-O-N-U-S game physical display will resemble asmall tropical island with 20 large treasure chests from which theplayer may select. Each chest randomly contains a treasure (i.e., goldcoins, gold-link chains, silver bars, gems, jewelry, etc.) valuedbetween a casino-specified minimum and maximum amount. In addition tothe prize, each chest is filled with sand, so the player must actuallydig with their hands to “unearth” the treasure beneath that awaits them.(III) Inside Job—This game is themed around having free access to opensafety deposit boxes in a bank vault. Many movies have presented thisscenario to the delight of audiences. The playfield consists of a wallof safety deposit boxes of varying sizes, with each box corresponding toa playfield “square”. When the player makes and confirms a selection,the following animated results are displayed: Positive impact squaresswing open to reveal cash, valuables, stocks and bonds, etc., dependingupon value, which then “morph” into a representation of the square'scontents. Negative impact squares reveal a watch dog, security guard, analarm, or police lights and sirens, which proceed to “harass” the playerby revealing the drawback or forfeiture if the square is active. If thesquare is inactive, the watch dog is offered a bone or steak, thesecurity guard falls back asleep or decides to watch TV, the alarm wiresare cut or the alarm is otherwise silenced, and the police are sent on adifferent “call” or ordered to take a meal break at the local donutshop. Empty squares open to reveal dust, cobwebs, a “deed” to theBrooklyn bridge, “Enron” stock certificates, a stack of IOU's, a Floridaswamp land contract, or other amusing representations of the squarehaving no significant contents. Prizes are themed around valuablestypically stored for safe keeping such as cash, “family” jewels, U.S.savings bonds, rare collectibles (i.e., expensive baseball cards), andpossibly even the “pink slip” to a vintage vehicle. The B-O-N-U-S gamephysical display will resemble the interior of a bank vault with 20large safety deposit boxes from which the player may select. Each boxrandomly contains valuables (i.e. cash, rare coins or collectibles,jewelry, U.S. savings bonds, a deed to a new Las Vegas condominium,etc.) valued between a casino-specified minimum and maximum amount.Should a “family” of casinos insist upon exclusivity of a theme acrosstheir properties, a variation of the Inside Job theme titled SafeCracker may be employed. (IV) Safe Cracker—This variation of Inside Jobis themed around opening safes of various shapes and sizes. Theplayfield consists of a group of safes of various styles (i.e. key, dialtumbler, numerical, digital keypad, etc.), with each safe correspondingto a playfield “square”. Given the similarities between safety depositboxes and safes, the animated sequences for positive impact, negativeimpact and empty squares, as well as the type of prizes available, willbe quite similar to those described in the Inside Job theme with minorvariations. The B-O-N-U-S game physical display will resemble theinterior of a well decorated study that could be found in a typicalmansion. Throughout the study are 20 safes of different shapes andsizes, including several large freestanding safes, wall safes, andperhaps even a child's toy safe from which the player may select. Eachsafe randomly contains valuables akin to those described in the InsideMan theme valued between a casino-specified minimum and maximum amount.

Additional customization options to further enhance game play include:(I) Pay to Continue Playing Your Game, (II) User-Selectable Number ofSafe vs. Risk Choices, (III) Single Press or Double-Touch SelectionInstead of Confirm Button and (IV) Random Pick Button. (I) Pay toContinue Playing Your Game—This option becomes available at the end ofgame play and may be configured to appear on losing games, winninggames, or not at all. At the end of game play, prior to the reveal ofthe playfield, the player is offered the option of continuing to playtheir game by paying a casino-specified amount of credits up to theirmaximum bet. The player is then granted a casino-specified number ofadditional “protected” or SAFE selections and/or “unprotected” or RISKselections which they may use to continue playing their game, takingadvantage of all “positive-impact” squares that they have alreadyrevealed. Based upon odds calculations, the Pay to Continue Playing YourGame option may be offered once or multiple, successive times on thesame round of game play or not at all. (II) User-Selectable Number ofSafe vs. Risk Choices—This option offers the player additional controlover their game play experience by allowing them to select the Number ofSafe vs. Risk Choices via a slider control on the screen. The sliderwould be adjustable from left or SAFER to right or RISKIER. At the farleft position, the player would receive the maximum number of“protected” or SAFE selections and minimum number of “unprotected” orRISK selections based upon their coin-in level of play. In this example,as the slider is moved one position from left to right, the player“exchanges” one of their “protected” or SAFE selections for two“unprotected” or RISK selections. The slider can continue to be movedfrom left to right until such time as the player has “exchanged” all oftheir “protected” or SAFE selections for twice as many “unprotected” orRISK selections. Based upon our example, at the 5 coin-in level of gameplay, the leftmost or safest position affords the player with 7“protected” or SAFE selections and 5 “unprotected” or RISK selections,while the rightmost or riskiest position offers NO “protected” or SAFEselections and 19 “unprotected” or RISK selections. Players favored byan abundance of good luck may opt for the riskier game in which theyhave more chances to reveal positive impact squares. The ratio of“unprotected” or RISK selections offered for each “protected” or SAFEselection “exchanged” is an operator adjustable setting selected by thecasino. (III) Single Press or Double-Touch Selection Instead of ConfirmButton—In the interest of increasing the overall speed of game play, theConfirm Button functionality may be deactivated, resulting in theimmediate selection of the cell with a single press of the screen by theplayer. While resulting in a faster game, accidental or inaccuratescreen presses may result in player annoyance. A double-touch selectionprocess may then be employed with the first screen press highlightingthe selected square following by a subsequent press of the same squarefor confirmation. While actually resulting in more screen presses thanusing the Confirm Button, less overall hand movement is required, whichmay result in reduced player fatigue and longer play sessions. Giventhat most computer-savvy players are familiar with the “double-click” ofa mouse, the Double-Touch Selection method is an easy concept to masterand affords an extra level of safety against accidental player screentouches. The Double-Touch Selection method may also be used inconjunction with an active Confirm Button, thereby allowing players touse either method to make their selections. (IV) Random Pick Button—Inthe interest of increasing the overall speed of game play and adding anovel approach to the selection process, a Random Pick button may beemployed to randomly make one or more selections from the playfield. Thenumber of random selections made is determined by whether the player ismaking SAFE or RISK selections and the number of selections the playerhas already made. For example, if the player is in the process of makingseven SAFE selections and has already made three SAFE selections fromthe playfield, pressing the Random Pick button will result in fourrandom, additional SAFE selections being made. Pressing the Random Pickbutton when no SAFE selections have been made will result in all SAFEselections being made randomly. Since RISK selections are madeindividually, pressing the Random Pick button during a RISK selectionresults in a single, random selection being made. The Random Pick buttonmay be pressed repeatedly, resulting in the random reselection of thesame number of selections that were randomly made. This allows theplayer the option of making desired selections, if any, and pressing theRandom Pick button any number of times until such time as they areaesthetically pleased with the “pattern” of their selections in theplayfield. The feature opens the door to enhanced playability forplayers who have a “gut feel” on how they want their selectionsdistributed across the playfield as well as those players who followcertain beliefs or superstitions based upon numbers or touching themachine in a specific manner or number of times. In this configuration,the Confirm button must still be pressed to accept and validate theselections made. As an option, the Random Pick button may be configuredto randomly choose and confirm the selections in a single button press,thereby allowing for only a single press of the Random Pick button. TheRandom Pick button may be enabled or disabled at the casino'sdiscretion.

The software platform calls upon the functions associated with positiveimpact, negative impact, and indifferent squares each time the playermakes and confirms a selection from the playfield. At the beginning ofthe game as well as after each player selection, the status andinformation area legend is updated to reflect the remaining contents ofthe game playfield, current player winnings, selections remaining,associated odds, and other useful information that aides the player intheir risk versus reward decisions. The software platform and associatedphysical displays near the games are “wrapped” in the casino's choice ofthemes available from the manufacturer and customized to meet thecasino's specific desires.

Example Game Basic Play Logic: (1.) The player inserts coins, cash, or aticket into the game. (2.) The player is prompted to select the“Coin-In” credit 1-5 level of play. The screen displays additionalbenefits of each successive level, including the quantity of each typeor category of positive impact square along with the number of“protected” or SAFE selections for each “Coin-In” credit level of play.(3.) The player selects and confirms the “Coin-In” credit level of play.The RNG is called to populate the positive impact, negative impact, andindifferent squares throughout the playfield. (4.) The player isprompted to choose and confirm their 1 st “protected” or SAFE selection.Upon selection through the touch screen and confirmation with a physicalbutton press to avoid accidents, the selected square is revealed. Thetype of square is processed, and “winning functions” are checked forcompletion (i.e. W-I-N, G-A-M-E, B-O-N-U-S, J-A-C-K-P-OT, etc.). If a“winning function” occurs, the appropriate follow-up action is taken(i.e., launch W-I-N or G-A-M-E features or freeze game for attendantassistance). Once complete, credits, multipliers, sequential cashawards, etc. are updated in the legend. (5.) The player is prompted tochoose and confirm their next “protected” or SAFE selection. Theprocesses outlined in steps 4-5 continue until there are no “protected”or SAFE selections left. At the casino's discretion, as an alternativefor speedier game play, all “protected” or SAFE selections may be madeat once followed by a single, physical confirmation button press. Allselected squares are then revealed at once and “winning functions” arechecked for completion with appropriate follow-up action. (6.) Theplayer is asked if they would like to end the game or elect to make an“unprotected” or RISK selection. If the player chooses to end the game,the entire playfield is revealed, credits amassed during the round areadded to the players “credit bank” and prizes won are delivered as aredeemable “dispensed ticket” or via attendant assistance. If the playerchooses to continue, the casino-specified percentage of negative impactsquares for the “Coin-In” level of play are randomly activated. (7.) Theplayer is prompted to choose and confirm their 1st “unprotected” or RISKselection. The player still possesses the option to end the game untilsuch time as they confirm their selection. Upon confirmation with aphysical button press to avoid accidents, the selected square isrevealed. The type of square is processed, now including activedrawbacks and/or forfeitures, and “winning functions” are checked forcompletion with appropriate follow-up action. If a “Make Safe” selectionsquare is revealed, the player is informed of the conversion of their“unprotected” or RISK selection to a “protected” or SAFE selection andprompted to select another square under the security of “protected” orSAFE status. (8.) The player is prompted once again if they would liketo end the game or elect to make another “unprotected” or RISKselection. The processes outlined in steps 6-8 continue until there areno “unprotected” or RISK selections left, the player elects to end thegame with “unprotected” or RISK selections remaining unused, or anactive negative impact End Round (or game terminating) square isselected. (9.) At the end of the round, the entire playfield isrevealed, and the player is updated on their round winnings with creditsdelivered to the player's “credit bank”, prizes valued below acasino-established threshold delivered as a redeemable “dispensedticket”, and larger winnings and B-O-N-U-S game participation andprogressive J-A-C-K-P-O-T winnings handled by an attendant and/or casinomanagement. (10.) The player is prompted once again to select theirdesired “Coin-In” credit 1-5 level of play or cash out the remainingcredits in their “credit bank”. The calculated deployment of positiveimpact, negative impact and indifferent squares allows the casino tocustom-tailor the odds of winning specific prizes, as well as thegeneral odds of winning on each “Coin-In” credit level of play. Even so,the player will be made well aware of the fact that their gamingexperience is not an RNG predetermined win or loss, but an intricateinterplay of their own luck coupled with their decision to risk currentwinnings to potentially unlock even greater rewards.

Risk vs. Reward Playfield

Players insert cash, coins, credit cards, redeemable tickets or vouchersinto the machine to fund a Credit Bank. Players then determine thenumber of credits they wish to bet on the game (i.e., minimum 1 credit,maximum 5 credits). The more credits that players wager, the greater thepotential rewards. The legend and status and information areas displaythe rewards available in the game as well as the number of selectionsplayers will receive based upon their wager. The number and distributionof selections may be randomly provided, and the order of use of theselections may be required to be exercised in a specific order or may bechosen by the player. After the amount of the wager is selected andentered (committed to play), the Play button is pressed to begin thegame. At this time a first set of selections of the two categories isprovided. Players may be first prompted to make a quantity of SAFEselections from the playfield based upon their wager. These initialselections are considered SAFE as they cannot negatively impact theresults of the game, that is the player cannot lose all or even some ofthe amount wagered.

If the selection is to be made automatically and randomly by theprocessor, a Confirm button is pressed to reveal the SAFE selections onthe series of panels or frames provided on the screen. The legend andstatus and information areas are updated to reflect the results of therevealed SAFE selections. Players are then prompted to either press theCollect button to receive their winnings (if any) and end the game, orcontinue playing the game by making at least one RISK selection, whichcan negatively impact the results of the game.

If players choose to continue playing, a single RISK selection is madefrom the playfield and the Confirm button is pressed to reveal the RISKselection. If a game terminating event has not been triggered, thelegend and status and information areas are updated to reflect theresults of the revealed RISK selection. Players are once again promptedto either press the Collect button to receive their winnings (if any)and end the game, or continue playing the game by making another RISKselection. This process continues until players press the Collectbutton, trigger a game ending event, or exhaust their number ofremaining RISK selections. Based upon the outcome, status, and odds,players may be offered the opportunity to purchase additional SAFEand/or RISK selections to continue playing the game. Players may notpurchase only additional SAFE selections and when multiple, additionalselections are purchased (with a combination of SAFE and RISKselections), at least one selection of each category of selection mustbe exercised or all selections must be exercised. Even if the programallows for use of the SAFE selection as a first selection among thepurchased (or awarded) additional selections, there can be no COLLECTentry until at least one or an equal number or all RISK selections havebeen exercised. Otherwise, players are awarded their winnings (if any)and the entire playfield is revealed. Players may then determine thenumber of credits they wish to bet on the next game or cash out.

Game Instructions (as they May be Physically Viewed on Game Console):

-   -   1. Insert cash, coins, ticket, voucher, etc.    -   2. Place your bet and press PLAY or BET MAX.    -   3. Make SAFE selections from playfield (Press RANDOM for random        selections).    -   4. Press CONFIRM to reveal SAFE selections.    -   5. Press COLLECT to end game and collect winnings or make a RISK        selection from playfield (Press RANDOM for random selection).    -   6. Press CONFIRM to reveal RISK selection.    -   7. Good Luck!

Video Poker Playfield Variant with “Bonus Attachments”

Players insert cash, coins, credit cards, redeemable tickets or vouchersinto the machine to fund the Credit Bank. Players then determine thenumber of credits they wish to bet on the game (i.e., minimum 1 credit,maximum 7 credits). Betting 1-5 credits plays standard video poker,while betting a side bet or at least one additional credit or forexample a total of 6-7 credits invokes the “bonus attachment” feature.After the wager is selected, the Play button is pressed to begin thegame. Players are prompted to select 5 cards from the playfield. TheDeal button is pressed to reveal the selected cards. Players choosewhich cards (if any) to HOLD in their hand by selecting each card tokeep. The Discard button is pressed to remove the unselected cards fromthe hand. Players are prompted to select the same number of discardedcards from the playfield. The Draw button is pressed to reveal theselected cards. Based upon the outcome and odds, players may be offeredthe option of purchasing the opportunity to re-select at least one oftheir draw cards from a reshuffled playfield. Otherwise, winning handsare paid according to the pay table and the entire playfield isrevealed. Players may then determine the number of credits they wish tobet on the next game or cash out.

If the “bonus attachment” feature is invoked, bonuses including creditmultipliers, bonus games, and instant win prizes may be “attached” toeither specific cards or locations on the playfield. Revealing a “bonusattachment” entitles players to receive the bonus reward as long as thecard to which the bonus is “attached” remains in the final winning hand.In other words, cards with “bonus attachments” that are discarded do notresult in a bonus award, and cards with “bonus attachments” remaining infinal hands that are not listed as winning hands in the pay table alsodo not result in a bonus award.

Game Instructions (as they May be Physically Viewed on Game Console):

-   -   1. Insert cash, coins, ticket, voucher, etc.    -   2. Place your bet and press PLAY or BET MAX.    -   3. Select 5 cards from playfield or press RANDOM for randomly        selected cards.    -   4. Press DEAL to place selected cards in hand.    -   5. Select cards to HOLD in hand.    -   6. Press DISCARD to remove unselected cards from hand.    -   7. Select draw card(s) from playfield or press RANDOM for        randomly selected card(s).    -   8. Press DRAW to place selected cards in hand.    -   9. Good Luck!

Purchaseable Additional Selections

Another format of play within the concepts of the present technology isthe ability to purchase additional selections or groups of selectionsduring play. This feature can be described as a method of providing awagering game on a video wagering system. A player places value at riskin exchange for a first number of player usable selections. Theselections comprise two categories of selections, a first category ofselection having a first effect upon at least some selection results anda second category of selection having a second effect upon at least someselection results. The player exercises at least some but less than allselections of frames to reveal at least one symbol for each selectionmade, symbols being able to provide a player with potentially positiveaward results, positive award results, potential negative results,negative results or neutral results. After exhausting the first numberof selections, the player has the opportunity to make and may make anelection to purchase or not to purchase at least one additionalselection. As with the underlying technology described above, at leastthe first effect of the first category of selection can at least reducea negative effect or potential negative effect by at least some degree.A first set of at least one additional selection that can be purchasedmay or must include at least one selection that is not a first categoryof selection. The first set of additional selections preferably includesboth a first category of selection and at least one second category ofselection. It is a preferred embodiment of play that all selections inthe first set of additional selections must be exhausted before theplayer can elect to resolve all wagers. It is another embodiment of playthat at least one selection from the first category and at least onesecond category of selection before the player can elect to resolve allwagers.

Multiple Game Play Variations

The game play format of the present invention offers a significantopportunity for providing multiple formats of play at the same time.While most video games having a limited number of reels and pay linesavailable, the present system of pick-and-reveal symbol display allowsfor the system to operate by providing separate game play symbolcollection areas on the screen, with multiple games being played at thesame time. This is shown clearly in the screen shot 2 of FIG. 1.

In that game play variation, there can be seen at least ten differentgames being played at the same time. The games may be elected for playby the player or may be automatically played by every player. On theright side of the screen shot 2 are shown ten different tally sets forscoring different games that may be played one-at-a-time or in groups orall at one time in the play of the system of the present technology. Thenumber of credits wagered may be one basis for determining how manygames are played at any time, selecting different games and differentnumbers of games may control or influence how many original selectionsare provided (e.g., when playing fewer games, more selections would beprovided, and when selecting more games, fewer original selections wouldbe provided). In a preferred mode, all games are played every time thesystem is played or at least every time the maximum number of credits isplayed. For example, None or fewer than all of the three progressivejackpots shown in tallies 4, 6 and 8 may be played without at least somethreshold minimum wager. For example, with a maximum wager (e.g., fivecredits) or a maximum wager plus a bonus wager (e.g., five credits thenan additional one credit, for six credits total, with only the fivecredits used as the basis for any multiplied winning or odds onpayouts), the player may have all three progressive jackpots 4, 6 and 8in play. It may be a format of play that with a maximum wager, only theMini-Pot 8 is engaged, and with one additional credit the Midi-Pot 6 isengaged, and with two additional credits the Mega-Pot 4 is engaged, orwith at least three maximum wagers, or at least three maximum wagersplus one additional credit, the Mega-Pot 4 is engaged. Different symbolsare used to win these various jackpots and as each symbol is chosen,they are entered into the appropriate tally for a game in which thesymbol is used.

Immediately below the three Jackpot tally frames 4, 6 and 8 is shown anInstant Cash play tally format 10. In the play of that game, numbersrevealed from the revealed frames on the screen shot 2, the numbers areadded in the order revealed into the frames of the tally form 10. Thenumbers may be added starting on the right or starting on the left ofthe frames, with zeros available for selection in the play of the game.There may be a requirement that at least a minimum total value beaccumulated in the play of this game before the award is collectable.For example, the total may have to be at least $2.00 or at least $1.00to be collectable, or the listed amount (e.g., $0.90) would not be addedto the credits.

Immediately below the Instant Cash tally form 10 is shown three basicbonus games 12, 14 and 16 in which free spins, credit awards, or entryinto a bonus round may be achieved by collection of symbols that fillthe frames of these tally forms 12, 14 and 16. Different size prizes areprovided for different numbers of symbols or different probabilities forthe symbols.

Immediately below the Bonus Games tally forms 12, 14 and 16 are shownthree Match & Win tally forms 18 20 and 22 which provide specific awardsfor these preferably higher frequency symbols. In addition to normalsymbol selections filling the frames in the Match & Win game, WildSymbols may be available on the screen. The Wild Symbols may be used inall games, but preferably are used in only the lower payout games, andespecially only in the Match & Win game. If there are enough WildSymbols available in the screen shot 2 to have any significant frequencyof play and provide interest to the player, it is preferable that thosesymbols be used only in the lower payout games, or the frequency of thecomplimenting higher payout award symbols (such as those used in theProgressive Jackpot tallies 4, 6 and 8) would have to be reduced toretain a reasonable frequency of winning events in the larger valuegames.

One description for the play using this multiple game format would be asa method of providing a wagering game on a video wagering system. Aplayer places value at risk in exchange for a first number of playerusable selections. The selections comprise two categories of selections,a first category of selection having a first effect upon at least someselection results and a second category of selection having a secondeffect upon at least some selection results. The player exercises atleast some but less than all selections of frames to reveal at least onesymbol for each selection made, symbols being able to provide a playerwith potentially positive award results, positive award results,potential negative results, negative results or neutral results. Winningevent combinations available from revealed symbols comprise at least twodifferent bases of winning selected from the group consisting of:

-   -   a) a first jackpot won by providing a specific combination or        sequence of a first set of at least five symbols;    -   b) a second jackpot, smaller in size than the first jackpot won        by a specific sequence or combination of second set of at least        four symbols, but fewer than a number of symbols needed in the        first set to win a largest amount in the first jackpot; and    -   c) a sequence of numbers that are inserted into a series of        blank frames and the numbers accumulating into a winning amount.

At least the first effect of the first category of selection can atleast reduce a negative effect or potential negative effect by at leastsome degree.

The other elements of play of the pick-and-reveal technology describedherein are also preferably used in the practice of this multigame playformat.

In the play of this method format, it may be desirable to require thatthe sequence of numbers accumulating into a winning amount must exceed aminimum value amount or a minimum number of integers to provide anaward. The method may be played with available winning combinations ofall of a), b) and c) in the play of the game. At least one jackpot of a)and b) may provide words or letters as the symbols. To promote purchaseof additional selections, the first number of player usable selectionsis usually exactly equal in number or less than a number of symbolsneeded to win a largest amount in the first jackpot.

The screen may also be populated with non-selectable frames 24 to adjustprobabilities and give an attractive appearance to the screen. Thenon-selectable areas may remain the same or change from game to game.

Numerous other features of play that may be used, for example, mightinclude an Information/Stats button providing players with a detaileddescription of the quantity of each game symbol remaining in the gamealong with the overall odds of selecting a positive, negative, orneutral symbol. A Random pick button that automatically makes randomselections for players when pressed. The random pick button may bepressed repeatedly to randomly reselect from the playfield. There may bea Confirm button to serve as final confirmation of selections made byplayer. The ability to purchase additional selections may and should belimited by the outcome, status, and odds, the opportunity for players topurchase additional SAFE and/or RISK selections to continue playing thegame. It may be possible early in the play of the game to purchase a few(one or even two) SAFE selections, without also purchasing attendantRISK selections, but this is less preferred. Additionally, there must bea limit to the number of SAFE selections (only) that may be purchased atany time, and although the game ending events that occur can place aninherent limit on the total number of all selections that may bepurchased, it is desirable to place a limit on that total number ofselections in the game play rules. It is also possible to provide theplayer with the opportunity to exchange SAFE selections for a largerquantity of RISK selections.

Game play may use a “Double-tap” method of making selections from theplayfield by pressing the screen once to highlight a selection followedby a required second press to confirm the selection. In traditional Kenoformats, it is typical to press a selection and erase the selection by asecond tap to the screen. This is acceptable, as Keno must select aminimum number of squares (numbers) that are already displayed, and theprocessor generators randomly selects squares in a virtual “drawing” ofnumbers, so that all player selections must be present on the screen atthe time of the drawing. At the conclusion of the game of the presenttechnology, it is also possible to reveal of the entire playfieldallowing players to see the exact location of every game symbol at theend of the game.

Game Play and Especially Video Poker Playfield Variant with “BonusAttachments” Potential Novel Concepts

In the play of this format, especially where a number (at least one)symbol that has been revealed may be discarded and replaced, there isanother novel feature in the play of the present technology that can bepracticed. In a game where at least one symbol may be replaced by adiscard and draw feature (e.g., selecting another frame to revealanother symbol), Bonus Attachments may be randomly provided to one ormore symbols that are available for selection. These bonus symbols mayprovide a multiplier for any wins achieved, provide a multiplier for anywins achieved with fewer than X numbers of selections having been made,provide a free additional selection in a next game (not in the presentgame as that would negate the possibility of replacing the symbol withthe bonus attachment), and the like.

When a player reveals a symbol with the bonus attachment thereon, theplayer is then faced with a choice, depending upon other symbolsavailable. For example, if the player has attained a small win and thebonus attachment is a multiplier, and the likelihood of selecting areplacement symbol that would increase the existing multiplied award issmall, the Player would likely keep the bonus attachment, even if thatsymbol with the attachment does not directly contribute symbols thatprovide the award. For example, in a poker game, if the five cardsrevealed were a pair of Queens, a four, a six, and a 9 (with a bonus 3×multiplier attached thereto), the theoretical best result a player couldget by discarding the 9 only would be to get another Queen, which wouldonly give the player a typical 3× reward for Three-of-a-kind, the playerwould elect to keep the 9 with the bonus attachment and replace as manyof the other non-Queen cards.

In an alternative situation, where a player has K-Q-J-10 in suit and a Qwith a 2× bonus attachment associated with it, the math becomes quitedifferent for influencing retention or discarding of the bonusattachment. The typical award for a Pair of Queens would be 1× thewager, plus the 2× bonus attachment. However, the award for a samesuited card as the K-Q-J-10 is typically 5×, the award for a differentsuited 9 or Ace is typically 4×, and the award for a same suited 9 istypically 200× and a same suited Ace is typically 1000×. With these muchhigher potential payouts for available replacement cards, the playerwould likely then discard the bonus attachment card and seek areplacement card, sacrificing a small win (2×) for the potential of manymore larger wins.

In the play of this format of game, it would be typical to populate theentire deck of cards on a playfield from which selections are made byplayer. A Random Number Generator (RNG) would populate all cards acrossthe playfield prior to player selection or the RNG would provide atemplate that would be selected in the next series of selections,without regard to what actual frames were selected. There could be arandom pick button that automatically makes random selections for playerwhen pressed. The random pick button may be pressed repeatedly torandomly reselect from the playfield. There would also be a confirmbutton to serve as final confirmation of card selections made by player.Based upon the outcome and odds, which may be displayed on the screen,including an actual statement of the probabilities of improvement andthe statistical analysis of the benefit or disincentive for one or morereplacements, the player may exercise the option to purchase theopportunity to re-select their draw cards from a reshuffled playfield.

Bonuses that may be “attached” may include, by way of non-limitingexamples in addition to those already described, credit/awardmultipliers, bonus games, and instant win prizes. These may be“attached” to either specific cards or locations on the playfield.“Attached” bonuses are awarded for cards displaying “bonus attachments”that appear only in final, winning hands.

A Credit multiplier “bonus attachment” may be one or more creditmultiplier “bonus attachments” appearing in the final winning hand thatare added together, resulting in the credit multiplier value which isapplied to the credits awarded for the winning hand as defined in thepay table. A Bonus game “bonus attachment” is a separate bonus game thatis launched after the winning hand payout provided a card with the bonusgame “attachment” appears in the final winning hand.

An Instant win prize “bonus attachment” is an instant prize award orprize selection opportunity that is launched after the winning handpayout provided a card with the instant win prize “attachment” appearsin the final winning hand.

With respect to the above description then, it is to be realized thatthe optimum dimensional relationships for the parts of the invention, toinclude variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and mannerof operation, assembly and use, are deemed readily apparent and obviousto one skilled in the art, and all equivalent relationships to thoseillustrated in the drawings and described in the specification areintended to be encompassed by the present invention.

Many variations may be effected in the practice of the presenttechnology. For example, although the practice of the technology hasbeen emphasized as an electronic game or even a live card game, it maybe played as a TV Game Show or live game show.

Therefore, the foregoing is considered as illustrative only of theprinciples of the invention. Further, since numerous modifications andchanges will readily occur to those skilled in the art, it is notdesired to limit the invention to the exact construction and operationshown and described, and accordingly, all suitable modifications andequivalents may be resorted to, falling within the scope of theinvention.

1. A method of providing a wagering game on a video wagering systemcomprising: a player placing value at risk in exchange for a firstnumber of player usable selections; the selections comprising twocategories of selections, a first category of selection having a firsteffect upon at least some selection results and a second category ofselection having a second effect upon at least some selection results;the player exercising at least some but less than all selections offrames to reveal at least one symbol for each selection made, symbolsbeing able to provide a player with potentially positive award results,positive award results, potential negative results, negative results orneutral results; at least some symbols being images of playing cards;wherein at least the first effect of the first category of selection canat least reduce a negative effect or potential negative effect by atleast some degree.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein a selection of anegative effect is made and the first effect allows replacement of aselected symbol after the symbol is revealed to the player.
 3. Themethod of claim 1 wherein a selection of a negative effect is made andthe first effect allows replacement of a selected symbol after thesymbol is revealed to the player, but with an alteration in awardsprovided by a pay table for ranked poker hands.
 4. The method of claim 1wherein after making at least two selections, the player may forfeit atleast one additional wager.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein all firstcategory of selections must be used before any of the second category ofselections are exercised.
 6. The method of claim 1 wherein the playermay elect which category of selection to use on each selection.
 7. Themethod of claim 1 wherein at any time during play, if a player hasaccumulated an award amount, the player may forfeit any remaining secondcategory selections and retain all award amounts accumulated at thattime.
 8. The method of claim 1 wherein the second category of selectionshas no impact on any effects of selections.
 9. The method of claim 1wherein the player is given a number of selections fewer than a totalnumber of frames from which selections may be made.
 10. The method ofclaim 9 wherein there are at least ten frames from which selections maybe made.
 11. The method of claim 10 wherein there are at least 25 framesand the player receives at least five selections and at least oneselection is a first category of selection and at least one selection isa second category selection.
 12. The method of claim 11 wherein thereare at least 50 and no more than 150 frames which may be selected by aplayer.